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Insights into the Role of Vitamin D in the Prevention and Control of Cancer and Other Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases

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A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Micronutrients and Human Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (5 March 2024) | Viewed by 24769

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Prof. Dr. Jose M. Martin-Moreno

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Guest Editor

Preventive Medicine, University of Valencia, Av Blasco Ibanez 15, 46010 Valencia, Spain
Interests: epidemiology; preventive medicine; public health; nutrition; cancer and NCDs
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Alejandro Martín-Gorgojo

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Co-Guest Editor

Medical Specialties Section, Madrid City Hall, 28006 Madrid, Spain
Interests: skin cancer

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Dear Colleagues，

Vitamin D is an actual hormone that humans can synthesize upon sun exposure or through a balanced and healthy diet, including vitamin D-rich foods or supplements. Evidence is accumulating from animal nutrition experiments showing that vitamin D could potentially influence apoptosis and tumor-associated angiogenesis, reduce the initiation of carcinogenesis, and delay the multiplication and proliferation of tumor cells. In humans, it is known that the incidence and mortality rates of some malignant tumors are lower in individuals living in southern countries, where exposure to ultraviolet light from the sun and to vitamin D itself is more intense. Moreover, several observational and interventional studies have been conducted, suggesting that vitamin D can help reduce cancer risk in people. However, the results so far have not been consistent. Overall, the evidence is not solid and comprehensive enough to establish that vitamin D supplementation can prevent cancer. At the same time, in a complementary manner, the possibility of associated beneficial effects has also not been ruled out.

Furthermore, increasing evidence indicates that vitamin D is also crucial in both preventing and managing various chronic non-communicable ailments (NCDs), including cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and osteoporosis.

Motivated by the pending challenges described above, this Special Issue of Nutrients aims to bring together current cutting-edge research to define the state of the art and knowledge, shedding further light on the prevention and control of cancer and other NCDs.

We invite original research articles, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and perspectives on, but not limited to, the following areas:

-Mechanisms underlying the role of vitamin D in the prevention and control of cancer and other NCDs;
-Epidemiological evidence linking vitamin D status with cancer and other NCDs;
-Clinical trials investigating the effects of vitamin D supplementation on the prevention and control of cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and other NCDs;
-The potential function of vitamin D in the prevention and control of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, osteoporosis, and other NCDs;
-The relationship and interaction between vitamin D and other nutrients in the prevention and control of cancer and other NCDs.

We encourage contributions from professionals and experts in the fields of nutrition, preventive medicine and epidemiology, oncology, cardiology, endocrinology, dermatology, rheumatology, traumatology, and other related disciplines. Submissions will undergo a rigorous peer-review process, and accepted papers will be published in this Special Issue of Nutrients, a Q1 journal with a current impact factor of 6.706.

Prof. Dr. Jose M. Martin-Moreno
Dr. Alejandro Martín-Gorgojo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

vitamin D
calcitriol
cancer prevention
cancer prognosis
cancer incidence
cancer mortality
nutritional assessment
nutritional intervention
preventive medicine

Published Papers (6 papers)

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11 pages, 2288 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Interaction of Vitamin D Supplements and Marine n-3 Fatty Acids on Digestive Tract Cancer Prognosis

by Soichiro Fukuzato, Hironori Ohdaira, Yutaka Suzuki and Mitsuyoshi Urashima

Nutrients 2024, 16(7), 921; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16070921 - 22 Mar 2024

Viewed by 1062

Abstract

A meta-analysis suggested that marine n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), e.g., eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), might reduce cancer mortality. However, a randomized clinical trial of marine n-3 PUFA and vitamin D supplementation failed to verify this benefit. This study aimed to investigate the potential interaction between vitamin D supplementation and serum EPA and DHA levels. This post hoc analysis of the AMATERASU trial (UMIN000001977), a randomized controlled trial (RCT), included 302 patients with digestive tract cancers divided into two subgroups stratified by median serum levels of EPA + DHA into higher and lower halves. The 5-year relapse-free survival (RFS) rate was significantly higher in the higher half (80.9%) than the lower half (67.8%; hazard ratio (HR), 2.15; 95% CI, 1.29–3.59). In the patients in the lower EPA + DHA group, the 5-year RFS was significantly higher in the vitamin D (74.9%) than the placebo group (49.9%; HR, 0.43; 95% CI, 0.24–0.78). Conversely, vitamin D had no effect in the higher half, suggesting that vitamin D supplementation only had a significant interactive effect on RFS in the lower half (p for interaction = 0.03). These results suggest that vitamin D supplementation may reduce the risk of relapse or death by interacting with marine n-3 PUFAs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into the Role of Vitamin D in the Prevention and Control of Cancer and Other Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases)

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13 pages, 537 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Influence of Vitamin D on the Incidence of Metabolic Syndrome and Hormonal Balance in Patients with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

by Katarzyna Lejman-Larysz, Anna Golara, Marta Baranowska, Mateusz Kozłowski, Paweł Guzik, Iwona Szydłowska, Jolanta Nawrocka-Rutkowska, Elżbieta Sowińska-Przepiera, Aneta Cymbaluk-Płoska and Agnieszka Brodowska

Nutrients 2023, 15(13), 2952; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15132952 - 29 Jun 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2720

Abstract

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a heterogeneous endocrine disorder that affects 8–13% of women of reproductive age. It is one of the most common causes of infertility and is associated with hyperandrogenism in the form of hirsutism and acne, non-ovulatory cycles, and characteristic ovarian morphology. The available research on serum vitamin D deficiency in patients with PCOS and the appropriateness of vitamin D supplementation in this group of women is inconclusive, so we decided to investigate the influence of vitamin D on the incidence of metabolic syndrome and hormonal balance in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome. The study comprised 120 women aged between 18 and 42 years, who were divided into two groups: a group with diagnosed polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and a group of regularly menstruating women without features of androgenisation, in whom polycystic ovary syndrome was excluded. Each patient underwent a history and physical examination, including a gynecological examination, anthropometric measurements were taken, including height, weight, waist, and hip circumference, and blood pressure was measured using the Korotkow method. In the female patients, the following parameters were also determined from the blood: follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), oestradiol, TSH, ft4, prolactin (PRL), total testosterone, DHEASO4, 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17-OHP), sex-hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), androstendione, 25(OH) vitamin D3 metabolite. The majority of the patients with polycystic ovary syndrome were found to have deficient or suboptimal serum vitamin D levels, and the effects of vitamin D on the SHBG levels and free-androgen indices in these patients was examined. The effects of vitamin D on the incidence of metabolic syndrome and BMI, waist-to-hip ratio, waist circumference, and blood pressure in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome were also found. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into the Role of Vitamin D in the Prevention and Control of Cancer and Other Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases)

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21 pages, 3476 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Vitamin D Supplementation during Intensive Care Unit Stay Is Associated with Improved Outcomes in Critically Ill Patients with Sepsis: A Cohort Study

by Boshen Yang, Yuankang Zhu, Xinjie Zheng, Taixi Li, Kaifan Niu, Zhixiang Wang, Xia Lu, Yan Zhang and Chengxing Shen

Nutrients 2023, 15(13), 2924; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15132924 - 28 Jun 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2169

Abstract

Background: Vitamin D, as a common micronutrient, has been widely used in critically ill patients. However, whether supplementation of vitamin D in adult patients with sepsis can improve their prognosis remains controversial. Methods: Data from the Mart for Intensive Care IV database was used in this retrospective cohort study, and adult patients with sepsis were enrolled. Critically ill patients, admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) between 2008 and 2019 at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), were divided into the vitamin D supplementation group and non-vitamin D supplementation group. The primary outcomes were defined as all-cause in-hospital, 28-day, and 90-day mortality rates after admission to the ICU. A 1:1 propensity score matching (PSM), inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW), and overlap weighting (OW) analyses were used to minimize selection bias and balance the baseline demographic characteristics. Regression and survival analyses were performed to assess the association between vitamin D supplementation and clinical outcomes in patients with sepsis. Results: In total, 3539 patients with sepsis were enrolled as study participants; of these, 315 were supplemented with vitamin D during their ICU stay. In-hospital, 28-day, and 90-day mortality rates were significantly lower in patients with sepsis supplemented with vitamin D. Multivariate regression analysis showed vitamin D supplementation as a potential protective factor for in-hospital mortality with an odds ratio (OR) = 0.70 (0.51–0.96) after adjusting for all confounders. The hazard ratios (HRs) for 28-day and 90-day mortality were 0.65 (0.50–0.85) and 0.70 (0.55–0.90), respectively. The survival analysis showed that the vitamin D supplementation group had a higher survival probability within 28 and 90 days (p-value < 0.05). These results remained relatively stable post PSM, IPTW, and OW. However, we found no evidence that vitamin D supplementation could shorten the length of stay in the ICU or hospital. Conclusions: Vitamin D supplementation during an ICU stay was associated with improved prognosis in patients with sepsis, as evidenced by lower in-hospital, 28-day, and 90-day mortality rates and lower disease severity-related scores, but showed no influence on the length of stay in the hospital or ICU. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into the Role of Vitamin D in the Prevention and Control of Cancer and Other Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases)

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16 pages, 3272 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Isochromosome 12p Formation Regulates Vitamin D Metabolism in Testicular Cancer

by Peter Törzsök, Jasper Van Goubergen, Martin Pichler, Renate Pichler and Frédéric R. Santer

Nutrients 2023, 15(10), 2384; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15102384 - 19 May 2023

Viewed by 1867

Abstract

Isochromosome 12p (iChr12p) is typical in almost all invasive testicular cancers. Increased copy number of genes on 12p is associated with the development of a clinically manifest tumor; however, the causative genes have not yet been identified. Chromosome 12 harbors many genes involved in Vitamin D metabolism. RNAseq analysis of Vitamin D receptor (VDR) genes from the TCGA cohort revealed that clustering of VDR expression signatures could differentiate between pure seminomas and non-seminomatous germ cell tumors (NSGCT). Using TCGA mRNA expression of anabolic (CYP2R1, CYP27A1 and CYP27B1) and catabolic (CYP24A1) Vitamin D enzymes, positive (PTHLH, IFNG, and TNF) and negative (FGF23) feedback regulators could also clearly distinguish between pure seminomas and NSGCT. We hypothesize that the regulation of Vitamin D metabolism might be disturbed through iChr12p formation, influencing testicular carcinogenesis via increased FGF23 and PTHLH expression. While FGF23 represses CYP27B1 and activates catabolism of active hormone, increased PTHLH secretion can lead to hypercalcemia via inactivation of VDR. In conclusion, testicular cancer is associated with extensive modifications in intratesticular Vitamin D homeostasis. Further research is needed to clarify whether Vitamin D deficiency causes the formation of iChr12p and whether Vitamin D deficiency via iChr12p genomic aberration is involved in testicular carcinogenesis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into the Role of Vitamin D in the Prevention and Control of Cancer and Other Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases)

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16 pages, 2091 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Vitamin D Supplementation and Its Impact on Mortality and Cardiovascular Outcomes: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of 80 Randomized Clinical Trials

by Antonio Ruiz-García, Vicente Pallarés-Carratalá, Miguel Turégano-Yedro, Ferran Torres, Víctor Sapena, Alejandro Martin-Gorgojo and Jose M. Martin-Moreno

Nutrients 2023, 15(8), 1810; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15081810 - 7 Apr 2023

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 13573

Abstract

Background: The impact of vitamin D supplementation on cardiovascular outcomes and mortality risk reduction remains unclear due to conflicting study findings. Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), published between 1983 and 2022, that reported the effect of vitamin D supplementation in adults versus placebo or no treatment on all-cause mortality (ACM), cardiovascular mortality (CVM), non-cardiovascular mortality (non-CVM), and cardiovascular morbidities. Only studies with a follow-up period longer than one year were included. The primary outcomes were ACM and CVM. Secondary outcomes were non-CVM, myocardial infarction, stroke, heart failure, and major or extended adverse cardiovascular events. Subgroup analyses were performed according to low-, fair- and good-quality RCTs. Results: Eighty RCTs were assessed, including 82,210 participants receiving vitamin D supplementation and 80,921 receiving placebo or no treatment. The participants’ mean (SD) age was 66.1 (11.2) years, and 68.6% were female. Vitamin D supplementation was associated with a lower risk of ACM (OR: 0.95 [95%CI 0.91–0.99] p = 0.013), was close to statistical significance for a lower risk of non-CVM (OR: 0.94 [95%CI 0.87–1.00] p = 0.055), and was not statistically associated with a lower risk of any cardiovascular morbi-mortality outcome. Meta-analysis of low-quality RCTs showed no association with cardiovascular or non-cardiovascular morbi-mortality outcomes. Conclusions: The emerging results of our meta-analysis present evidence that vitamin D supplementation appears to decrease the risk of ACM (especially convincing in the fair- and good-quality RCTs), while not showing a decrease in the specific cardiovascular morbidity and mortality risk. Thus, we conclude that further research is warranted in this area, with well-planned and executed studies as the basis for more robust recommendations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into the Role of Vitamin D in the Prevention and Control of Cancer and Other Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases)

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21 pages, 1436 KiB

Open AccessSystematic Review

The Global Prevalence of Vitamin D Deficiency and Insufficiency in Patients with Multiple Myeloma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

by Nor Hayati Ismail, Ali Mussa, Mutaz Jamal Al-Khreisat, Shafini Mohamed Yusoff, Azlan Husin, Muhammad Farid Johan and Md Asiful Islam

Nutrients 2023, 15(14), 3227; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15143227 - 20 Jul 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2585

Abstract

Background: Multiple myeloma (MM) is a hematological malignancy characterized by the exponential growth of malignant plasma cells. Individuals diagnosed with MM exhibit a deficiency in vitamin D and may suffer fatigue, a loss of muscular strength, persistent musculoskeletal aches, and pain. The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to determine the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency and deficiency in individuals diagnosed with MM. Methods: We searched five electronic databases using relevant keywords. The quality of the included studies was evaluated using the critical appraisal tool developed by the Joanna Briggs Institute. We employed a random-effects model and presented the findings in the form of percentages accompanied by 95% confidence intervals (CI). This protocol has been officially registered in PROSPERO under the registration number CRD42021248710. Results: The meta-analysis comprised a total of eighteen studies and found that, among patients with MM, the occurrence of serum vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency was 39.4% (95% CI: 25.8 to 52.9, n = 3746) and 34.1% (95% CI: 20.9 to 47.2, n = 3559), respectively. The findings indicate that a greater proportion of newly diagnosed patients exhibited vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency, with rates of 43.0% and 41.6%, respectively, compared to those receiving treatment (rates of 41.6% and 32.3%, respectively). The findings of the sensitivity analyses were consistent, and most of the studies (72.2%) were deemed to be of high quality. The results of Egger’s test indicated the absence of publication bias. Conclusions: Patients diagnosed with MM have been found to exhibit significantly elevated levels of both vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency. Therefore, it is recommended to consider vitamin D testing as an additional parameter in the current criteria for the clinical evaluation of MM. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insights into the Role of Vitamin D in the Prevention and Control of Cancer and Other Chronic Noncommunicable Diseases)

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