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Vitamin D in liver cancer: novel insights and future perspectives

Antonio Markotić, Tomislav Kelava1, Helena Markotić

  • 1Tomislav Kelava, Department of Physiology, University of Zagreb School of Medicine, Šalata 3, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia, tkelava@mef.hr.

Croatian Medical Journal
|May 4, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Vitamin D exhibits anticancer effects in liver cancer by inhibiting cell growth and promoting cell death. However, clinical evidence on vitamin D supplementation for liver cancer prevention or survival remains inconclusive.

Area of Science:

  • Hepatology
  • Oncology
  • Endocrinology

Background:

  • Vitamin D is recognized for its potential antineoplastic effects in liver cancer.
  • Both direct and indirect mechanisms are implicated in vitamin D's role.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To critically evaluate recent basic and clinical research on vitamin D's role in liver cancer.
  • To assess the current evidence regarding vitamin D's impact on liver cancer development and progression.

Main Methods:

  • Review of recently published basic science studies.
  • Analysis of clinical observational studies and supplementation trials.

Main Results:

  • Basic studies show vitamin D suppresses hepatic stellate and Kupffer cells, and directly impacts liver cancer cells (anti-proliferative, anti-angiogenic, proapoptotic, prodifferentiative).
  • Mechanisms include Notch signaling inactivation, p27 accumulation, and inhibition of Met/ERK signaling.
  • Clinical data are promising but inconclusive; supplementation studies lack data on cancer occurrence or survival.

Conclusions:

  • Vitamin D demonstrates significant potential in preclinical models of liver cancer.
  • Further robust clinical trials are needed to establish the efficacy of vitamin D supplementation for liver cancer outcomes.

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