Vitamin A serum and dietary vitamin A intake in lung cancer patients.
Clinical and experimental evidence indicates a possible role for vitamin A deficiency in the pathogenesis of bronchogenic carcinoma. We, therefore, measured serum vitamin A levels in 67 newly diagnosed non-resectable lung cancer patients. In 43 of these patients daily vitamin A intake was also determined. Serum vitamin A levels were within the normal range of the general population of 66 of the 67 patients. Eighteen of 43 patients had daily vitamin A intakes less than 5000 IU/day while 25 patients had daily intake above this level. The serum vitamin A level did not correlate with histologic subtype, extent of disease or presence or absence of hepatic metastases. While these data suggest that vitamin A deficiency was not implicated in pulmonary carcinogenesis, more definitive conclusions await prospective evaluation of high risk individuals followed serially for many years.
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D014801:Vitamin A / Q000097:blood*; D014802:Vitamin A Deficiency / Q000150:complications*
D014801:Vitamin A