Nutrition Tip: Vitamin D and Calcium Influence Cell Death in the Colon

In a clinical study of 92 patients, supplementing diet with calcium and vitamin D appeared to increase the levels of a protein called Bax that controls programmed cell death in the colon. More Bax might be pushing pre-cancerous cells into programmed cell death, says Emory researcher Veronika Fedirko.

Previous studies have shown that calcium and vitamin D tend to reduce colon cancer risk.

"We were pleased that the effects of calcium and vitamin D were visible enough in this small study to be significant and reportable," Fedirko says. "We will have to fully evaluate each marker's strength as we accumulate more data."

The studies of colorectal biopsy samples are part of a larger effort to identify a portfolio of measurements that, together, may gauge someone's risk of getting colon cancer, says Roberd Bostick, MD, MPH, professor of epidemiology at Emory's Rollins School of Public Health.

"We want to have the equivalent of measuring cholesterol or high blood pressure, but for colon cancer instead of heart disease," Bostick says. "These measurements would describe the climate of risk in the colon rather than spotting individual tumors or cells that may become tumors."

More about Bostick's plans for developing non-invasive blood or urine tests for colon cancer risk is available in an Emory Health Sciences magazine article.