Vitamin D may keep low-grade prostate cancer from becoming aggressive

Summary: Taking vitamin D supplements could slow or even reverse the progression of less aggressive, or low-grade, prostate tumors without the need for surgery or radiation, scientists say.

Vitamin D may keep low-grade prostate cancer from becoming aggressive -- ScienceDaily

The new research suggests that vitamin D supplementation may improve low-grade prostate cancers by reducing inflammation, perhaps lessening the need for eventual surgery or radiation treatment. "We don't know yet whether vitamin D treats or prevents prostate cancer," says Dr. Bruce Hollis. "At the minimum, what it may do is keep lower-grade prostate cancers from going ballistic."

Hollis notes that the dosage of vitamin D administered in the study -- 4,000 U -- is well below the 10,000-20,000 U that the human body can make from daily sun exposure. "We're treating these guys with normal body levels of vitamin D," he says. "We haven't even moved into the pharmacological levels yet."

Good find OB. Nothing worse than a "Ballistic" prostate! Would have liked to see how or if CRP levels correlated to this study.

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Originally Posted by kelkel

Nothing worse than a "Ballistic" prostate!

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I hate it when that happens.

It's a good guess there'll be more about this. Hopefully another Hollis seminar on YouTube.

Here's another paragraph I forgot to include:

Hollis wondered if giving these men vitamin D supplements during the 60-day waiting period would affect their prostate cancer. His previous research had shown that when men with low-grade prostate cancer took vitamin D supplements for a year, 55 percent of them showed decreased Gleason scores or even complete disappearance of their tumors compared to their biopsies a year before (J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., 2012, DOI: 10.1210/jc.2012-1451).

Vitamin D is crucially important for so many things. Can't say enough about it.

Good stuff. I don't even like calling it a vitamin but it sells better that way.

I cant find the article I read about and heard on the news a while back that said like 60% of colon surgeries are not needed and the doctors are doing it strictly for $$$

It was not based simply on how long a patient would live after surgery or no surgery such as many of the studies I found online but it was more to the fact that it was not needed at all and the biopsies they took were false indicators of cancer.

In a analysis of urology patients in Maine that was sponsored by the Maine Medical Association, researchers found prostate surgery rates varied widely by locality, evidently because of differing philosophies among individual physicians on the procedure`s value.

Researchers from the University of Massachusetts, Massachusetts General Hospital and Dartmouth Medical School attributed differing prostate surgery rates to ``lack of information concerning the risks and benefits of the procedure, an inappropriate belief that the operation prolongs life and a failure to base decisions on patient preference`` by physicians who do many of the operations.

When patients have severe prostate enlargement that interferes with urination, it can cause recurrent infection and even fatal kidney diseases. In these cases, it is clear that prostate surgery is required.

But in many cases an enlarged prostate may only cause mild symptoms and there is no compelling reason for surgery, the study noted.

Enlarged prostate glands are common among older men.

``While we found a general relationship between severity of symptoms and the degree to which patients were bothered by them, a substantial number of severely symptomatic patients were not very concerned about their condition,`` the researchers said.

``A clear majority of patients who were mildly or moderately symptomatic at the time of their operation reported little or no discomfort from their prostate condition.``

Instead of routinely recommending surgery for enlarged prostates, doctors should only do the surgery when the condition clearly poses a health hazard or when the patient is experiencing considerable discomfort and wants relief, the study concluded.

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Originally Posted by kelkel

Good stuff. I don't even like calling it a vitamin but it sells better that way.

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I agree. And if we start calling it a hormone, the wrong people may become interested in it.

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Originally Posted by lovbyts

Instead of routinely recommending surgery for enlarged prostates, doctors should only do the surgery when the condition clearly poses a health hazard or when the patient is experiencing considerable discomfort and wants relief, the study concluded.

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I don't even want to think about an operation. Will supplement with Vitamin D for life!

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Originally Posted by OingoBoingo

I don't even want to think about an operation. Will supplement with Vitamin D for life!

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thankgod there isnt a patent on it, big pharma must be spewing!

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Originally Posted by Simon1972

thankgod there isnt a patent on it, big pharma must be spewing!

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They (big pharmacy) have been trying to get the FDA to regulate (ban) vitamins for years. Im really surprised they have not found a loophole yet.

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Originally Posted by lovbyts

I cant find the article I read about and heard on the news a while back that said like 60% of colon surgeries are not needed and the doctors are doing it strictly for $$$

It was not based simply on how long a patient would live after surgery or no surgery such as many of the studies I found online but it was more to the fact that it was not needed at all and the biopsies they took were false indicators of cancer.

In a analysis of urology patients in Maine that was sponsored by the Maine Medical Association, researchers found prostate surgery rates varied widely by locality, evidently because of differing philosophies among individual physicians on the procedure`s value.

Researchers from the University of Massachusetts, Massachusetts General Hospital and Dartmouth Medical School attributed differing prostate surgery rates to ``lack of information concerning the risks and benefits of the procedure, an inappropriate belief that the operation prolongs life and a failure to base decisions on patient preference`` by physicians who do many of the operations.

When patients have severe prostate enlargement that interferes with urination, it can cause recurrent infection and even fatal kidney diseases. In these cases, it is clear that prostate surgery is required.

But in many cases an enlarged prostate may only cause mild symptoms and there is no compelling reason for surgery, the study noted.

Enlarged prostate glands are common among older men.

``While we found a general relationship between severity of symptoms and the degree to which patients were bothered by them, a substantial number of severely symptomatic patients were not very concerned about their condition,`` the researchers said.

``A clear majority of patients who were mildly or moderately symptomatic at the time of their operation reported little or no discomfort from their prostate condition.``

Instead of routinely recommending surgery for enlarged prostates, doctors should only do the surgery when the condition clearly poses a health hazard or when the patient is experiencing considerable discomfort and wants relief, the study concluded.

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Very useful information - especially for us older guys.