Lee Swanson Research Update

Colorectal Cancer Recurrence Reduced with Vitamin D/Calcium Combination

December 2003

"Calcium supplementation and vitamin D status appear to act largely together, not separately, to reduce the risk of colorectal adenoma recurrence." That’s what researchers at the Dartmouth Medical School in Lebanon, NH concluded at the end of a study involving 803 subjects.

A trial initiated by Maria V. Grau, M.D. and her colleagues demonstrated the protective effect of calcium and vitamin D supplementation in preventing the recurrence of colorectal cancer in test subjects. The study found that calcium supplements reduced the risk of recurrence only among individuals who had vitamin D levels above the median (29.1 ng/mL). Similarly, healthy vitamin D levels only seemed to help reduce recurrence of cancer among individuals taking calcium supplements.

Researchers concluded that the study findings "provide a strong indication that vitamin D and calcium have a joint antineoplastic effect in the large bowel." They added that "further investigation is needed to understand the mechanistic basis of the vitamin D/calcium interaction and to clarify the amount of intake of each nutrient required for optimum protective effect."

Journal of the National Cancer Institute95(23):1765-1771, 2003

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