Breast Cancer Awareness Month was filled with races, walks, benefits, sales, and heart-wrenching stories."  This 2007 article should have been a handout everywhere."  As the conclusions state, a serum level of Vitamin D to 52 ng/ml can be readily obtained via exposure to sunlight or supplementations and the scientists point out that this would decrease the incidence of breast cancer by 50%.

Thanks to Mike Adams for sending this in.

Vitamin D and prevention of breast cancer: Pooled analysis

Cedric F. Garlanda, , , Edward D. Gorhama, Sharif B. Mohra, William B. Grantb, Edward L. Giovannuccic, Martin Lipkind, Harold Newmarke, f, Michael F. Holickg and Frank C. Garlanda

aUniversity of California, San Diego, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, 9500 Gilman Drive, 0631C, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA

bSunlight, Nutrition and Health Research Center (SUNARC), San Francisco, CA 94109, USA

cHarvard School of Public Health, Departments of Nutrition and Epidemiology, Boston, MA 02115, USA

dStrang Cancer Prevention Center, New York, NY 10021, USA

eSusan Lehman Cullman Laboratory for Cancer Research, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA

fThe Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA

gVitamin D Laboratory, Section of Endocrinology, Nutrition and Diabetes, Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA

Abstract

Background

Inadequate photosynthesis or oral intake of Vitamin D are associated with high incidence and mortality rates of breast cancer in ecological and observational studies, but the dose–response relationship in individuals has not been adequately studied.

Methods

A literature search for all studies that reported risk by of breast cancer by quantiles of 25(OH)D identified two studies with 1760 individuals. Data were pooled to assess the dose–response association between serum 25(OH)D and risk of breast cancer.

Results

The medians of the pooled quintiles of serum 25(OH)D were 6, 18, 29, 37 and 48 ng/ml. Pooled odds ratios for breast cancer from lowest to highest quintile, were 1.00, 0.90, 0.70, 0.70 and 0.50 (p trend < 0.001). According to the pooled analysis, individuals with serum 25(OH)D of approximately 52 ng/ml had 50% lower risk of breast cancer than those with serum <13 ng/ml. This serum level corresponds to intake of 4000 IU/day. This exceeds the National Academy of Sciences upper limit of 2000 IU/day. A 25(OH)D level of 52 ng/ml could be maintained by intake of 2000 IU/day and, when appropriate, about 12 min/day in the sun, equivalent to oral intake of 3000 IU of Vitamin D3.

Conclusions

Intake of 2000 IU/day of Vitamin D3, and, when possible, very moderate exposure to sunlight, could raise serum 25(OH)D to 52 ng/ml, a level associated with reduction by 50% in incidence of breast cancer, according to observational studies.

Keywords: Breast cancer; 25-Hydroxyvitamin D; Dose–response gradient; Incidence; Epidemiology; Serum; Pooled analysis; Diet

The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Volume 103, Issues 3-5, March 2007, Pages 708-711
13th Workshop on Vitamin D (Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, April 2006)

From:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6T8X-4N8DJW6-9&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_searchStrId=1082445120&_rerunOrigin=scholar.google&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=263286143143b2046ec853d2462ef992