Table 4.

VDR-vitamin D endocrine system and cancer: summary

1. 1,25-(OH)2D is a potent inhibitor of cell cycle progression

Mainly as inhibitor of progression beyond G0/G1 stage

Coordinated action on many cell cycle pathways

Occurring in most normal and malignant cells

Variety of escape mechanisms in more malignant cell types

2. VDR null mice are predisposed to carcinogen/oncogen induced cancers

3. Large number of cross sectional and prospective epidemiological data link vitamin D deficiency with higher cancer incidence

4. Some selective VDR modulators inhibitor tumor growth in rodent tumor models

5. Proof of concept of therapeutic value of

Vitamin D supplementation: inconsistent results

Active vitamin D metabolites/analogs: ongoing studies