Vitamin D and cancer

[Guest guest]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6264533.stm

Vitamin pill for prostate cancer

Scientists have developed a vitamin D pill to treat advanced prostate

cancer.

Exposure to Vitamin D from sunlight is known to improve the prognosis

of certain cancers.

US drug company Novacea has produced a pill which delivers a concentrated

dose of the vitamin without running the risk of side-effects from an

overdose.

Chemistry and Industry magazine reports that if clinical trials of the

drug - Asentar (DN-101) - are successful it could be available by 2009.

This drug has shown potential in early trials

Dr Sharp

Cancer Research UK

The drug would be given to patients in the advanced stages of the

disease, along with chemotherapy drugs.

Professor Nick , a cancer expert at the University of Birmingham,

said the drug had produced impressive results in preliminary phase two

trials.

He said patients taking the drug lived for an average of an extra nine

months longer than those taking another chemotherapy drug - taxotere -

alone.

Professor said: " On average, patients in the advanced stage of

the disease survive about 18 months, so an extension of nine months would

be very significant in my view. "

Asentar provides levels of vitamin D 50 to 100 times higher than normal.

Patients would be expected to take one tablet once a week with their

weekly regime of taxotere for three weeks out of every four.

No guarantees

However, Professor said it was far from certain that the phase

three trials would repeat the success of the earlier tests.

The phase II trial used a less than optimal taxotere regime so the

survival rate may have been artificially inflated.

Professor said vitamin D was known to play a key role in the

regulation of several tissues, including the prostate and breast.

He said laboratory work had shown that cancer cells had lost the ability

to respond in the normal way to vitamin D, and carried on dividing in an

uncontrolled fashion.

Data shows that rates of prostate cancer are higher in countries further

away from the equator, where there is less exposure to sunlight.

Professor said it was possible that the new drug helped to increase

the sensitivity of cancer cells to the effect of other chemotherapy

drugs.

Dr Sharp, of the charity Cancer Research UK, said: " We would

welcome any improvements in the treatment for men with advanced prostate

cancer and this drug has shown potential in early trials.

" But the results of the much larger study are needed to fully

establish if this treatment is both effective and safe. "

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in men. It

kills one man every hour in the UK.

Story from BBC NEWS:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/6264533.stm

Published: 2007/01/20 00:49:45 GMT

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