Role of vitamin E in the prophylaxis of cancer.
Vitamin E may have anticancer properties as a lipid antioxidant and free radical scavenger. Some animal studies support this hypothesis, although findings are contradictory. Most human studies on the role of vitamin E in cancer etiology have been of case-control or cohort design. The results of such studies on whether vitamin E intake reduces the risk of cancer do not generally support the hypothesis of its protective effect, possibly owing to methodological issues. Some of the case-control studies, however, have shown lower concentrations of vitamin E in the serum of patients with cancer than in the controls. Cohort studies also generally show a low level of serum vitamin E associated with a slightly increased risk of cancer, though the strength of this association varies between populations and subgroups, as well as for different cancer sites. No definite conclusions about a causal connection between vitamin E and the occurrence of cancer can be drawn until the final results of current large-scale intervention trials are published.
Knekt
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Research Institute for Social Security, Social Insurance Institution, Helsinki, Finland.
D000818:Animals; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004032:Diet; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D009374:Neoplasms, Experimental / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000517:prevention & control; D012307:Risk Factors; D014810:Vitamin E / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D014810:Vitamin E