Thursday, February 09, 2006

Vitamin D may inhibit prostate cancer growth

Vitamin D can slow down the spread of prostate cancer by limiting the activity of certain enzymes, US and Taiwanese researchers report.

The in vitro study, reported in the journal Carcinogenesis (Vol. 27, pp. 32-42), showed that vitamin D, in the form of the highly active 1alpha, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25-VD), inhibited the function of protease enzymes that are involved in tumour invasion.

The body of evidence for the benefits of vitamin D against prostate cancer is rapidly growing, but the scientists do not recommend taking high doses of the vitamin warning against increased calcium blood levels and kidney problems.

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