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Prostate cancer

Calcium promotes cancer; vitamin D decelerates

Nature Reviews Urology volume 14, page 68 (2017)Cite this article

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Data from a large interventional animal study have shown that a high-Ca2+ diet can accelerate progression of prostate cancer, but that this effect can be inhibited by vitamin D.

Previous studies have suggested that Ca2+ might promote prostate cancer, with a small — though significant — association with prostate cancer risk. Mechanisms for such an effect are currently unknown, but might include a reduction in circulating vitamin D, caused by the high Ca2+ levels. However, these studies focussed on the occurrence of new tumours and not on the evolution of existing tumours, which is likely to be far more clinically relevant when increasing numbers of men with the disease are managed using active surveillance protocols. “The human context that is targeted relates to patients harbouring early, slowly progressing prostate cancer, who are, therefore, on active surveillance,” lead author Vincent Goffin told Nature Reviews Urology. “These patients have no treatment but regular follow-up, so it is important to identify environmental factors that might promote cancer progression to prevent it as far as possible, and to avoid reaching a disease status requiring surgical treatment.”

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References

  1. Bernichtein, S. et al. Vitamin D3 prevents calcium-induced progression of early-stage prostate tumors by counteracting TRPC6 and calcium sensing receptor upregulation. Cancer Res. http://dx.doi.org/10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-16-0687 (2016)

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  1. Annette Fenner
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Fenner, A. Calcium promotes cancer; vitamin D decelerates. Nat Rev Urol 14, 68 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrurol.2016.257

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