Low level of vitamin D increases the risk of breast cancer metastasis and death

Breast cancer patients with lower levels of vitamin D were far more likely to die and far more likely to have their cancer spread than women with normal levels, Canadian researchers reported on Thursday. In fact the women deficient in Vitamin D when they were diagnosed with breast cancer were 94 % more likely to have their cancer spread and were 73 % more likely to die than women with adequate vitamin D levels, and More than three-quarters of the women with breast cancer had a vitamin D deficiency the researchers said. “The women with the lowest vitamin D levels had the highest risk of death from breast cancer," Dr. Richard Schilsky, of the University of Chicago and president-elect of ASCO stated in an interview with Reuters.

     Goodwin said optimal levels of active vitamin D in the blood are considered to be somewhere between 80 and 110 or 120 nmol/L (nanomoles per liter) of blood, although there are no standard guidelines. They considered anything less than 50 nmol/L to be deficient; only 24% of the women with breast cancer had adequate levels. Women with low vitamin D levels were also likely to have developed cancer before reaching menopause, had higher body mass indexes -- a measure of being overweight -- had higher insulin levels and had more aggressive tumors. The researchers reported their results at a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.