Chicago – New research gives women another good reason to get plenty of bone strengthening calcium and vitamin D: The nutrients may reduce the risk of developing breast cancer.
A team of Harvard researchers reported Monday that premenopausal women who get more calcium and vitamin D – either from food or supplements – are less likely to get breast cancer.
Only about 20 percent of breast-cancer cases occur in women younger than 50, but those cases are often more aggressive. Mammograms, X-rays intended to find breast cancer earlier, are less accurate for women in their 40s and generally are not recommended for those younger than 40.
Though post-menopausal women can take medication to reduce their risk of developing breast cancer, nothing is available for premenopausal women.
Although the evidence is not strong enough to advise all women to take calcium and vitamin D, experts say it might help reduce the risk of breast cancer and it’s not likely to hurt.
“It’s probably reasonable to consider,” said Dr. Leslie Laufman, an editor of the National Cancer Institute’s screening and prevention website. “There’s no proof that making a change (in intake of calcium and vitamin D) matters – but it probably does.”
The bottom line for Jennifer Lin, one of the researchers in the Harvard study: “Adequate intake of calcium and vitamin D is necessary for women to keep up their health and, additionally, may help prevent the development of breast cancer, especially among premenopausal women.”
Other researchers called the findings “striking.”
“There is no known way to reduce (the incidence of) premenopausal breast cancer, and this is a major finding,” said Frank Garland, an epidemiologist.
“We think this is the most important development in the prevention of premenopausal breast cancer in history,” said Cedric Garland, an expert in preventive medicine.
Laufman cautioned that it’s not possible to prove the supplements prevent breast cancer without doing a more rigorous trial.
