Strong Association with Vitamin D Level & Lymphoma Progression & Survival

“The findings support the growing association between vitamin D and cancer risk and outcomes, and suggest that vitamin D supplements might help even those patients already diagnosed with some forms of cancer.” – Matthew Drake, MD, PhD

The quote above I found on an article related to vitamin D deficiency and its relationship to cancer and cancer progression from ProHealth.   More & more information is continually being revealed on how dangerous vitamin D deficiency is.  According to this recent ProHealth article:

A new study has found that the amount of vitamin D in patients being treated for diffuse large B-cell (non-Hodgkins) lymphoma was strongly associated with cancer progression and overall survival.

“These are some of the strongest findings yet between vitamin D and cancer outcome,” says the study’s lead investigator, Matthew Drake, MD, PhD, an endocrinologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. “While these findings are very provocative, they are preliminary and need to be validated in other studies. However, they raise the issue of whether vitamin D supplementation might aid in treatment for this malignancy, and thus should stimulate much more research.”

If you would like to view a You Tube video summary of this video, please click here to watch Mayo Clinic Study Finds Vitamin D Associated with Survival in Lymphoma Patients.  The study was conducted by researchers at the Mayo Clinic & the University of Iowa, who participate in SPORE – University of Iowa/Mayo Clinic Lymphoma Specialized Program of Research Excellence – that is funded by the National Cancer Institute. 

Out of the 374 study participants who were newly diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, 50% were deficient in vitamin D levels based on the commonly used clinical value of total serum 25(OH)D less than 25 ng/mL.  This study was not a clinical trial, but an epidemiologic study designed to identify predictors of outcomes in lymphoma.  Because this was not a clinical trial, patient management and treatments were not assigned.   The standard care for clinical practice was followed in this study. 

Patients with deficient vitamin D levels had a 1.5-fold greater risk of disease progression and a twofold greater risk of dying, compared to patients with optimal vitamin D levels after accounting for other patient factors associated with worse outcomes.

The findings of this study support the growing association between vitamin D levels, risk of cancer and outcomes.  The findings also suggest that vitamin D supplements might even possibly help the patients currently diagnosed with some forms of cancer, according to Dr. Drake.  He also said that:

“The exact roles that vitamin D might play in the initiation or progression of cancer is unknown, but we do know that the vitamin plays a role in regulation of cell growth and death, among other processes important in limiting cancer.”

There have also been studies done that suggest vitamin D deficiency may play a role in causing certain types of cancer and the outcome may also be affected once someone is diagnosed with cancer.  Reports have also discovered that vitamin D deficiency is associated with poor outcomes in these cancers:  breast, colon, head & neck.

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Possible Link with Vitamin D Deficiency & Asthma Severity

A a study published in the May 1st issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine  has revealed some new information on a possible link between vitamin D deficiency and allergy & asthma severity.  In this study the serum levels of approximately 600 Costa Rican children were linked to several indicators of allergy and asthma severity, including hospitalizations for asthma, use of inhaled steroids and total IgE levels.  Costa Rica is known to have a high prevalence of asthma.

Harvard Medical School & colleagues assessed each child participant for allergic markers (allergen-specific and general sensitivity tests), assessed their lung function & circulating vitamin D levels.

Researchers found that the children who had the lower vitamin D levels were significantly more likely to have been in the hospital for asthma the previous year.  These same children also ”tended to have airways with increased hyperreactivity and were likely to have used more inhaled corticosteroids, all signifying higher asthma severity. These children were also significantly more likely to have several markers of allergy, including dust-mite sensitivity.”  Juan Celedon, MD, DrPH and Augusto Litonjua, MD, MPH, of Harvard Medical School said:

“To our knowledge this is the first study to demonstrate an inverse association between circulating levels of vitamin D and markers of asthma severity and allergy.  While it is difficult to establish causation in a cross-sectional study such as this, the results were robust even after controlling for markers of baseline asthma severity.  This study suggests that there may be added health benefits to vitamin D supplementation” said Dr. Celedón. Current recommendations for optimal vitamin D levels are geared toward preserving bone health, such as preventing rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults.”

“This study also provides epidemiological support for a growing body of in vitro evidence that vitamin D insufficiency may worsen asthma severity, and we suspect that giving vitamin D supplements to asthma patients who are deficient may help with their asthma control.  Whether vitamin D supplementation can prevent the development of asthma in very young children is a separate question, which will be answered by clinical trials that are getting under way.”

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Risk of MS Associated With Vitamin D Deficiency Plus Common Genetic Variant

Researchers have discovered that in people with the DRB1 variant associated with MS, Vitamin D may play a very critical role. If there is a deficiency of Vitamin D, this gene may not function properly.

The research, published Feb 6 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics, suggests that vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy and the early years may increase the risk of the offspring developing MS later in life.

While the causes of multiple sclerosis are unknown, it is believed that genetics and environmental factors play a key role in the development of MS.  MS is a disabling neurologic condition that affects more than 2.5 million people around the world.

Studies have shown that the risk of MS is higher in areas that receive less sunshine.  According to ProHealth:

This supports a direct link between deficiency in vitamin D, which is produced in the body through the action of sunlight, and increased risk of developing the disease.

To read more on this topic, click the link below.

Vitamin D deficiency plus common genetic variant linked to MS risk

Vitamin D Testing Kits Available Online

The Vitamin D Council is offering for sale online your choice of two Vitamin D testing kits.  The first kit, which costs $65.00,will detect whether or not you are Vitamin D deficient and monitor supplemented levels.  This kit contains one test.

The second choice you can purchase is a set of four kits, which costs $225.00, can be purchased if you would like to test yourself and your family or just use the remaining kits to retest yourself after supplementation.

To order these tests, visit the ZRT Laboratory.

The Vitamin D Council recommends that Vitamin D levels should be between 50 ng/ml and 80 ng/ml year round.  The Vitamin D Council states that these levels are “natural” levels meaning levels that are normally obtained by people who are working in the sun.

I have published a very popular article on this website, The Dangers of Vitamin D Deficiency, that has become very popular and has received over 1,100 comments.  It talks about all of the illnesses and conditions that can be caused by Vitamin D deficiency and why it should not be taken lightly.

Vitamin D deficiency can cause heart disease, chronic pain, Fibromyalgia, hypertension, arthritis, depression, inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, PMS, Crohns Disease, cancer, MS and other autoimmune diseases. The Vitamin D Council states that Vitamin D deficiency can also cause stroke, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, muscle wasting and birth defects.

Vitamin D Deficiency Linked to Mood Disorders In Women

Research keeps showing that vitamin D deficiency is causing a lot of health problems and now there is more reason for women to worry.  The September-October issue of the Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health revealed the following information on vitamin D deficiency and mood disorders in women:

Four of six studies reviewed imparted significant results, with all four showing an association between low 25(OH)D levels and higher incidences of four mood disorders.

These mood disorders are:

• PMS (premenstrual syndrome)
• SAD (seasonal affective disorder)
• Non-specific mood disorder
• Major depressive disorder

The review of the studies show that there may be a possible biochemical mechanism occurring between mood disorders that affect women and vitamin D.  Further studies will be needed to research this issue more.

Low Vitamin D Associated with Increased Risk of Death

A report in the July 11th issue of Archives of Internal Medicine states that people with low levels of vitamin D appear to have a higher risk of death from all causes.

According to background information in the article, several studies have suggested that vitamin D deficiency contributes to cardiovascular disease, cancer and death. The optimum level for Vitamin D is supposed to be 30 nanograms per milliliter or higher. The report states that approximately 53% of women and 41% of men have levels lower than 28 nanograms per milliter.

Michal L. Melamed, MD, MHS, of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, and colleagues analyzed vitamin D levels in 13,331 individuals who participated in the Third National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES III), conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Vitamin D levels were collected between 1988 and 1994, and participants were tracked through 2000.

Over a median (midpoint) of 8.7 years of follow-up, 1,806 of the participants died. When they were divided into four groups (quartiles) based on their vitamin D levels, those in the group with the lowest level (less than 17.8 nanograms per milliliter) had a 26 percent increased rate of death from any cause compared with those in the group with the highest vitamin D levels. No significant associations were found when the researchers assessed vitamin D levels and risk of death from cardiovascular disease or cancer alone. Low vitamin D levels may be associated with death through their effect on blood pressure, the body’s ability to respond to insulin, obesity and diabetes risk, the authors note.

Other evidence that supports the risk of vitamin D deficiency’s role in death risk includes:

• Cardiovascular events are more common in the winter when vitamin D levels are at their lowest.
• Cancer survival is better if the cancer is diagnosed in the summer rather than in the winter.

The authors conclude that those with less than 17.8 nanograms per milliliter) is associated with a higher risk of all-cause mortality in the general U.S. population.

Source

Other Fighting Fatigue articles on Vitamin D Deficiency:

Vitamin D Deficiency:� A Disease of Neglect

Low Vitamin D May Be Harmful to Bones of Those with IBD

Vitamin D & Vitamin D Deficiency Links

Vitamin D Deficiency Tied to Back Pain In Older Women

The Dangers of Vitamin D Deficiency

Thanks to How to Cope with Pain for including this post as part of their monthly blog carnival.

Vitamin D Deficiency – A Disease of Neglect

If you are concerned about vitamin D deficiency, you will want to watch this great free video presentation by Dr. Michael Holick, PhD, MD – “The Vitamin D Pandemic and Its Health Consequences”. Dr. Holick is the author of the book, The UV Advantage: The Medical Breakthrough that Shows How to Harness the Power of the Sun for Your Health. He also the directs Boston University’s General Clinical Research Center. He is a Professor of Medicine, Physiology and Biophysics.

In this video, Dr. Holick discusses the little known facts about vitamin D deficiency and all of the health problems it causes and its role in several chronic illnesses. Dr. Holick also offers advice on how to avoid vitamin D deficiency.

After watching this video you will probably find that you want to forward the link to others, but here are some references from the presentation:

Who is at risk for Vitamin D deficiency?
According to Dr. Holick, everyone is.

How do we get Vitamin D?
From the sun, artificial light sources, foods and supplements. It is hard to get enough vitamin D strictly through diet alone.

How is Vitamin D deficiency defined?
The level of 25(OH)D (25-hydroxyvitamin D) measured in blood (serum) should be at least 50nmol/L, and Dr. Holick advocates 60 to 75. Insufficient/deficient is under 50, and to be conservative, toxic upper levels might start at about 150 to 200nmol/L.

Is Vitamin D deficiency common?
Yes – approximately 50% of all Americans and even higher numbers of darker skinned people and older age groups fall below the normal levels.

Why is Vitamin D deficiency a big deal?
In children, vitamin D deficiency can cause a condition known as rickets. This causes bowed, soft bones, muscle weakness, stunted growth, and high risk of low bone density later in life.

In adults, this condition is osteomalacia (a defect in the bone building process, by contrast with osteoporosis, which is breakdown of existing bone structures). Osteoporosis is silent, but osteomalacia involves aches and pains in the bones & joints, and muscle aches/weakness that can be generalized or isolated. As Dr. Holick explains it, the defective bone matrix absorbs water and expands, causing pain in the bones fibrous outer membrane (the periosteum), which contains the blood vessels and nerves providing nourishment and sensation in the bones. He diagnoses this condition by pressing to test for pain in certain places such as the breastbone and shin.

Dr. Holicksays that patients withthese symptoms are often diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. In Dr. Holick’s practice, 40% to 60% of patients presenting with these symptoms are vitamin D deficient, and of 150 patients presenting with these symptoms in a Mayo Clinic study, 139 were deficient.

What is even scarier are all of the other chronic illnesses and diseases linked to vitamin D deficiency: common cancers, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, TB, psoriasis, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, and even infections.

How much does sun block reduce the body’s ability to make D from sunshine?
SPF 15 reduces it by 99%.

What is the recommended amount of sun exposure one should get?
Except in winter in areas above the 35th latitude (only a bit north of even such southern cities as Atlanta, Georgia, which is at 33 north), Dr. Holickadvocates at least 10 minutes on 10% of the body surface (e.g., arms or legs) followed by good sun protection, two to three times a week. This balances the need for vitamin D with need to minimize skin cancer risk. Click on this link to check the latitude where you live.

Are obese people more likely to be deficient than normal weight people?
Vitamin D levels averaged 55% lower in a study group of obese people who had the same amount of UV exposure as normal weight participants.

Can you make any vitamin D in winter?
Little or none, even in sunny areas, if it’s above the 35th latitude north or south of the equator.

Does taking supplemental calcium and vitamin D work to counter osteoporosis and osteomalacia?
Yes.

Source

Thanks to Fit Buff for including this post as part of their Total Mind & Body Fitness Carnival 63.

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