Lower Vitamin D Levels Predict Poor Survival Outcomes in Melanoma

Source: Cancer Nework, March 2016

In patients with melanoma, lower 25-hydroxyvitamin D (vitamin D) levels were associated with poorer survival outcomes, according to a prospective study. This association was independent of C-reactive protein (CRP) levels.

“Vitamin D has anti-inflammatory properties, has antiproliferative effects on melanoma cells, can inhibit tumor growth and tumor invasiveness, and promotes melanoma cell DNA repair,” wrote study authors led by Jeffrey E. Lee, MD, of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Studies on intake or blood levels of vitamin D and melanoma risk, however, have yielded inconsistent results.

In the new study, researchers conducted a prospective analysis that accounted for important confounders including CRP, which is a marker of inflammatory response that is associated with melanoma outcomes. The study included 1,042 melanoma patients; the results were published online ahead of print in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Vitamin D levels were considered sufficient if they ranged between 30 and 100 ng/mL. Overall, the median level in this cohort was 25 ng/mL, and 24.6% of patients had a vitamin D level below 20 ng/mL. Levels did not vary significantly over increasing time from diagnosis.