Being the most leading cause of death in women, breast cancer is the most common cancer too in women around the world. Breast cancer is known to be associated with reproductive risk factors like start of puberty, delayed menopause, late at first pregnancy, never having been pregnant, obesity and a family history. Vitamin D's contribution in the development of breast cancer is still in the initial stages.
A study of 600 Brazilian women suggests that Vitamin D may minimize risk of cancer by preventing cell proliferation.
Study researchers concluded postmenopausal women had an increased risk of vitamin D deficiency at the time of their breast cancer diagnoses, associated with higher rates of obesity, than women of the same age group without cancer. Previous studies have also shown the relationship between vitamin D and breast cancer mortality. Women in the highest quartile of vitamin D concentrations, in fact, had a 50% lower death rate from breast cancer than those in the lower quartile, suggesting that vitamin D levels should be restored to a normal range in all women with breast cancer.
