patients with colon cancer with high levels of vitamin D are more likely to survive the disease

patients with colon cancer with high levels of vitamin D are more likely to survive the disease -

patients with bowel cancer with high levels vitamin D in their blood are more likely to survive the disease, a study shows.

patients with the highest levels of vitamin D had half the risk of dying compared to those with the lowest levels, the results indicate.

study is the first to correlate the total blood levels of vitamin D in patients with cancer of the intestine after diagnosis - including one produced after exposure to sunlight and that obtained from dietary sources -. with their long-term survival prospects

The University of Edinburgh team tested blood samples from nearly 1,0 patients after surgery for bowel cancer.

the biggest benefit of vitamin D was observed in patients with stage 2 disease, in which the tumor can be quite large, but the cancer has not yet reached.

researchers found that three-quarters of patients with vitamin D levels higher were alive at the end of five years, compared to less than two thirds of those with levels lower.

results show that vitamin D is associated with a much better chance of survival in cancer, although the nature of this relationship is not clear from this study.

authors of the study are intended to set up a clinical trial to test whether taking vitamin D tablets in combination with chemotherapy can improve bowel cancer survival rates.

levels of vitamin D measurement in patients with bowel cancer could also provide a useful indication of the prognosis, scientists say.

Professor Malcolm Dunlop, the Human Genetics Unit of the Medical Research Council at the University of Edinburgh, said. "Our results are promising, but it is important to note that this is an observational study we we need carefully designed randomized clinical trials before we can confirm whether taking vitamin D supplements offer a survival advantage for patients with bowel cancer. "