Pink News: Aggressive Breast Cancer Linked To Vitamin D Deficiency

Editor's note: Foodconsumer.org has recently reported on some studies regarding the  protective effect of vitamin D against breast cancer. Below is another study suggesting that maintaining an adequate vitamin D level is important in the fight against breast cancer. We hope everyone, particularly those who wear pink in the National Breast Cancer Awareness month, will find it interesting. 

We also have already reported on some studies suggesting that eating a low-fat diet, and a high ratio of omega-3 fatty acids to omega 6 fatty acids in a diet may help reduce the risk of breast cancer.  A growing body of evidence suggests that breast cancer in many cases is preventable, without resorting to diagnostic tools and drugs. 

African-American women have low levels of vitamin D 

African-American women were discovered to have had lower vitamin D levels than their white counterparts; additionally, vitamin D deficiency may raise the risk of developing aggressive breast cancer, according to a new study presented at the Third American Association of Cancer Research conference. 

Low levels of Vitamin D have, in earlier studies, been associated with elevated breast cancer risk.  Black women are at a higher risk because their skin color reduces the efficiency of the absorption of UV rays, which is imperative in producing D. 

Previous studies have found black women with breast cancer often have poorer prognosis.

Susan Steck, Ph.D., M.P.H., associate professor of epidemiology at the University of South Carolina and colleagues followed 107 women diagnosed with breast cancer in the previous five years. Sixty of them were black, while the rest were white. 

Blood samples were collected from patients and circulating 25 hydroxyvitamin D were also tested. The mean serum concentration of vitamin D was 29.8 ng/mL in white women, compared to only 19.3 ng/mL, among African-American women. 

In the study, the researchers defined vitamin D deficiency as a serum concentration of lower than 20 ng/mL. By this definition, 60 percent of the black women were vitamin D deficient compared to 15 percent of white women. 

Vitamin D levels were particularly lower in patients with triple-negative breast cancer – plus- those who suffered from an aggressive form of the disease were eight times more likely to be diagnosed with vitamin D deficiency. 

Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with elevated risk of about 20 types of cancer, according to Dr. John Cannell, vitamin D expert and director of Vitamin D Council.

In 1997, the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine said people ages 0 to 50 years old need 200 IU of vitamin D, those ages 51 to 70 400 IU, and those ages 71 or older 600 IU, according to Linus Pauling Institute. 

Numerous studies have suggested that these levels of vitamin D could be pathogenic. Dr. Cannell suggests adults need around 5000 IU per day to maintain healthy body functions and even higher doses may be needed to fight diseases.

The Canadian Cancer Society has already recommended 1000 IU as the minimum to maintain one’s body functions. 

Vitamin D is found in oily fish like salmon, pink or otherwise, mushroom, and vitamin D fortified foods.  It should be noted that foods fortified with vitamin D often times can't provide enough.  

One best way for people to get the safest vitamin D is to expose themselves to sunshine. If they can't, they may take supplements with high doses of vitamin D, like vitamin D drop sold at Carlson Labs or vitacost.com.

There will be more reports released at foodconsumer.org in the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month or the pink month to give readers some idea as to how to prevent the disease that is diagnosed in more than 175,000 women and kills about 50,000 each year in the United States.

By David Liu and editing by Rachel Stockton