Magdalena Waszyk-Nowaczyk, Eliza Główka, Stefania Superczyńska, Karolina Spitzka, Weronika Guzenda, Bartosz Sadowski, Aleksandra Falana, Daria Staś

The role of vitamin D in neoplasms and neurodegeneration diseases - a review of the literature
2020-04-27

In recent years, a significant increase in the incidence of cancer and neurodegenerative diseases has been observed. This is mainly because of the higher life expectancy and thus prolonged contact with risk factors, inadequate diet and lack of physical activity. Along with aging processes, the prevalence and incidence of many diseases rise dramatically. New drugs and solutions are constantly being sought that would help in particular preventing. One way could be the use of vitamin D or its analogues, which through their proven pleiotropic action, have become the focus of the interest of many scientists in the last decade. One might think that the problem of vitamin D deficiency should affect a small part of the population, due to health campaigns carried out and the availability of many OTC preparations with vitamin D in various forms. Research, however, confirms that the need for vitamin D supplementation is overlooked by healthcare professionals, and its deficiencies are widespread worldwide and affect all ages. It is very meaningful problem. It is important to check the concentration of this vitamin in the blood, which in the case of low levels can be correlated with potential health problems. The influence of vitamin D on physiological processes, confirmed by numerous studies and scientific publications, and thus also the prevention of numerous diseases, is an important argument indicating the need for patient education on how to take it regularly. For this reason, preventive actions carried out by professional medical staff, including pharmacists in community pharmacies, regarding awareness of the important role of vitamin D and its impact on our health are important. Patient counseling may have a significant effect on improving quality of life. This article discusses some mechanisms of antiproliferative, neuroprotective and immunomodulatory activity of active vitamin D derivatives on the example of selected cancers, Alzheimer's disease, and multiple sclerosis.

Keywords: vitamin D, Calcitriol, vitamin D supplementation, pleiotropic action of vitamin D.

© Farm Pol, 2020, 76(3): 149–155