High Vitamin D Levels Associated With Better Survival Rate From Bowel Cancer

A recent study suggests that bowel cancer patients with the highest levels of vitamin D in their blood have half the risk of dying after surgery when compared with patients with the lowest levels of vitamin D.

For this study, researchers tested blood samples from almost 1,600 bowel cancer patients after they had surgery to treat their cancers. Five years after surgery, 75% of patients with the highest blood levels of vitamin D were still alive, compared with only less than 66% of those with the lowest levels.

The greatest benefit of having a high vitamin D level was found in the patients who were already at stage 2 of the disease, when the tumors can be large but the cancer hasn’t yet spread.

Researchers from the University of Endinburgh conducted the study. It was published online ahead of print on July 7, 2014, in The Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Previous studies have associated vitamin D with reducing the risk of skin damage,reducing the risk of osteoporosis, combating diabetes, and improving age related macular degeneration.

Vitamin D can be found in milk, fortified cereals, fish, and eggs. Your body also processes vitamin D from the sun but it becomes harder for our bodies to process it as we age. A high quality vitamin D supplement is always a good option if you feel that you’re not getting enough through diet and sun.