Vitamin D thread -Please use this for your Vit D info.

[Jackie07]

Hi Sharon,

Thanks for asking. I am pretty sure my number (of Vit D) has been normalized in recent years as the doctors have not said anything about it since then.

I think the cause of it was that I had had a very busy schedule from 2003 to 2008 and rarely had time to go outside to absorb the sunlight. That's why even though I live in the sunny South, I still developed the deficiency. Once I realized it, I made sure that I would spend time outdoors and take my daily vitamin.

I also remind myself to 'tap' my feet whenever I'm at the computer. Due to the problems caused by the brain tumors (unrelated to breast cancer), I don't 'exercise' or even walk very much these days. So tapping my feet while sitting has become a second nature.

[R.B.]

I just watched this video again

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiGBVDcbFVk

This excellent lecture by Dr Holick is A definitive must watch

[R.B.]

Truly a quantum leap forward in terms of possible public policy changes . . .


http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/1...D_supplements/

"Scots told to take vitamin D supplements

ALL Scots should take vitamin D supplements because of the health implications of a lack of bright sunshine, according to experts.

An advisory body set up by the UK Government said the bleak British weather is stopping much of the population from receiving healthy amounts of the essential vitamin from sunlight - and natural food sources alone are not enough to boost levels.

The independent Scientific Advisory Body on Nutrition (SACN) made the recommendation after studying the links between vitamin D levels and a range of health problems, including musculoskeletal health, heart disease, type 1 diabetes, cancer and multiple sclerosis.

Current government advice is that at-risk groups, including pregnant women, children up to the age of five, adults over 65, and people with darker skin as well those who do not expose their skin to sunlight, should take a daily vitamin D supplement.

However, if SACN's draft recommendations are adopted it could lead to new guidance affecting the whole population. " . . . MORE

[R.B.]

Fat has an under appreciated role as a potential major storage site for fat soluble nutrients including vitamin D.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC291976/

Abstract

Deposition in and release of vitamin D3 from body fat: evidence for a storage site in the rat
Saul J. Rosenstreich, Clayton Rich, and Wade Volwiler
Author information ► Copyright and License information ►
This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.
Abstract

Vitamin D in all body tissues was radio-labeled by supplementing completely vitamin D-deficient weanling rats with oral vitamin D3-4-14C for 2 wk. All vitamin D was then withheld, and radioactivity and vitamin D content in a variety of organs and tissues were measured. Adipose tissue was found to contain by far the greatest quantity of radioactivity throughout the 3 month experimental period. Immediately after supplementation, half of the total radioactivity in adipose tissue corresponded to unaltered vitamin D3, and the other half to polar metabolites and esters of vitamin D3 and unidentified peak II. 1 month later there was approximately the same proportion but a decrease in the total quantity of each form. We conclude that adipose tissue is the major storage site for vitamin D3 in its several forms. Unaltered vitamin D3 was the principal storage form observed and presumably a source available for conversion to other metabolites during deprivation.

[R.B.]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26614548

Vitamin D and chemo.

ABSTRACT

"Breast. 2015 Nov 21. pii: S0960-9776(15)00230-1. doi: 10.1016/j.breast.2015.10.005. [Epub ahead of print]
Vitamin D (25-0H D3) status and pathological response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in stage II/III breast cancer: Data from the NEOZOTAC trial (BOOG 10-01).
Charehbili A1, Hamdy NA2, Smit VT3, Kessels L4, van Bochove A5, van Laarhoven HW6, Putter H7, Meershoek-Klein Kranenbarg E8, van Leeuwen-Stok AE9, van der Hoeven JJ10, van de Velde CJ8, Nortier JW10, Kroep JR11; Dutch Breast Cancer Research Group (BOOG).
Author information
Abstract
BACKGROUND:

Serum levels of 25-OH vitamin D3 (vitamin D) have been shown to be prognostic for disease-free survival in patients with breast cancer. We investigated the predictive value of these levels for pathological response after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer taking part in the NEOZOTAC phase-III trial. Additionally, the effect of chemotherapy on vitamin D levels was studied.
MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Serum vitamin D was measured at baseline and before the last cycle of chemotherapy. The relationship between these measurements and clinical outcome, as defined by pathological complete response in breast and lymph nodes (pCR) was examined.
RESULTS:

Baseline and end of treatment vitamin D data were available in 169 and 91 patients, respectively. Median baseline vitamin D values were 58.0 nmol/L. In patients treated with chemotherapy only, serum vitamin D levels decreased during neoadjuvant chemotherapy (median decrease of 16 nmol/L, P = 0.003). The prevalence of vitamin D levels < 50 nmol/L increased from 38.3% at baseline to 55.9% after chemotherapy. In the total population, baseline and end of therapy vitamin D levels were not related to pathological response. No associations were found between pCR and vitamin D level changes.
CONCLUSION:

The significant decrease in vitamin D post-neoadjuvant chemotherapy suggests that vitamin D levels should be monitored and in case of decrease of vitamin D levels, correction may be beneficial for skeletal health and possibly breast cancer outcome.

Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved."

[R.B.]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26554935

Low Vit D and triple negative

ABSTRACT


J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2015 Nov 7. pii: S0960-0760(15)30129-1. doi: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2015.11.003. [Epub ahead of print]
Vitamin D levels and breast cancer characteristics: Findings in patients from Saudi Arabia.
Abulkhair O1, Saadeddin A1, Makram O1, Gasmelseed A1, Pasha T1, Shehata H1, Fakhoury HM2.
Author information
Abstract

Inverse relationship between vitamin D status and risk of breast cancer has been previously reported in the literature. We conducted this study to determine the association between vitamin D levels and breast cancer characteristics in patients from Saudi Arabia. Newly diagnosed breast cancer patients (N=406) were recruited. Serum levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25 (OH) D] were measured at baseline. A significantly higher percentage of patients with triple negative status (18%) had 25 (OH) D levels ≤25nmol/L, compared to only 8% with 25 (OH) D levels >25nmol/L (p=0.009). Patients with 25 (OH) D levels ≤25nmol/L were 2.54 times more likely to present with triple negative status compared to those with 25 (OH) D levels >25nmol/L (p=0.02). Our findings suggest an association between low 25 (OH) D levels and increased risk of triple negative breast cancer.

Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[R.B.]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26408720

Ketogenic diet plus vitamin D lowered HER2 marker,

Only one person, the diet is not specified,
and of course there could be other factors,
but intriguing nonetheless.

ABSTRACT

"Anticancer Res. 2015 Oct;35(10):5525-32.
Effects of Pre-surgical Vitamin D Supplementation and Ketogenic Diet in a Patient with Recurrent Breast Cancer.
Branca JJ1, Pacini S2, Ruggiero M3.
Author information
Abstract
BACKGROUND:

A woman, mother of one at the age of 19 years, was diagnosed with mammary adenocarcinoma in the right breast in 1985 at the age of 37 years. The patient underwent surgery (quadrantectomy), lymphadenectomy and radiotherapy. In 1999, an adenocarcinoma was diagnosed in the left breast, followed by adequate resection, radiotherapy and anti-oestrogen receptor treatment for 6 years. In March 2014, an infiltrating adenocarcinoma was diagnosed in the remaining part of the right breast that had been operated on and irradiated in 1985.
CASE REPORT:

The pre-surgical biopsy, showed weak positivity for progesterone receptor (PgR) (<1%), high positivity for oestrogen receptor (ER) (90%), high positivity for human epidermal growth factor receptor (HER2) (>10%, score 2+), and high positivity for the nuclear protein Ki67 (30%). In the three weeks between diagnosis and operation, when no other treatment had been planned, the patient decided to self-administer high doses of oral vitamin D3 (10,000 IU/day), and to follow a strict ketogenic diet.
RESULTS:

Following right mastectomy, analysis of the surgical specimen showed no positivity for HER2 expression (negative, score 0), and significant increase in positivity of PgR (20%). Positivity for ER and Ki67 were unaltered.

CONCLUSION:

This observation indicates that a combination of high-dose vitamin D3 and ketogenic diet leads to changes in some biological markers of breast cancer, i.e. negativization of HER2 expression and increased expression of PgR.

Copyright© 2015 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved."