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An Estimate of Cancer Mortality Rate Reductions in Europe and the US with 1,000 IU of Oral Vitamin D Per Day

  • Conference paper
Cancer Prevention

Part of the book series: Recent Results in Cancer Research ((RECENTCANCER,volume 174))

Abstract

Solar ultraviolet B (UVB) irradiance and/or vitamin D have been found inversely correlated with incidence, mortality, and/or survival rates for breast, colorectal, ovarian, and prostate cancer and Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Evidence is emerging that more than 17 different types of cancer are likely to be vitamin Dsensitive. A recent meta-analysis concluded that 1,000 IU of oral vitamin D per day is associated with a 50% reduction in colorectal cancer incidence. Using this value, as well as the findings in a multifactorial ecologic study of cancer mortality rates in the US, estimates for reductions in risk of vitamin D-sensitive cancer mortality rates were made for 1,000 IU/day. These estimates, along with annual average serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels, were used to estimate the reduction in cancer mortality rates in several Western European and North American countries that would result from intake of 1,000 IU/day of vitamin D. It was estimated that reductions could be 7% for males and 9% for females in the US and 14% for males and 20% for females in Western European countries below 59°. It is proposed that increased fortification of food and increased availability of supplements could help increase vitamin D intake and could augment small increases in production of vitamin D from solar UVB irradiance. Providing 1,000 IU of vitamin D per day for all adult Americans would cost about $1 billion; the expected benefits for cancer would be in the range of $16–25 billion in addition to other health benefits of vitamin D.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sunlight, Nutrition and Health Research Center (SUNARC), 2115 Van Ness Avenue, MB 101, San Francisco, CA, 94109-2510, USA

    William B. Grant PhD

  2. Department of Family and Preventive Medicine 0631C, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0631, USA

    Cedric F. Garland PhD & Edward D. Gorham PhD

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  1. William B. Grant PhD
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  2. Cedric F. Garland PhD
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  3. Edward D. Gorham PhD
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  1. Tumor-Zentrum ZeTuP St. Gallen/Chur (Tumordiagnostik, Behandlung + Prävention), Rorschacherstr. 150, CH-9006, St. Gallen, Schweiz

    Hans-Jörg Senn  & Ursula Kapp  & 

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Grant, W.B., Garland, C.F., Gorham, E.D. (2007). An Estimate of Cancer Mortality Rate Reductions in Europe and the US with 1,000 IU of Oral Vitamin D Per Day. In: Senn, HJ., Kapp, U. (eds) Cancer Prevention. Recent Results in Cancer Research, vol 174. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-37696-5_20

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-37696-5_20

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