The Correlation of Plasma 25-Hydroxyvitamin D with Risk of Colorectal Cancers in Asian Population

Recently, it has been found that vitamin D deficiency links to highly prevalent chronic illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus and cancer. Colorectal cancer is the third most prevalent cancer and the fourth most common cause of cancer mortality worldwide with increasing incidence in Asian countries. Western-based population studies has stated that there is an inverse relationship between plasma 25(OH)D and risk of colorectal cancer. Despite the increase on colorectal cancer incidence and low vitamin D status in Asian countries due to lifestyle change, very few Asian-population based studies on vitamin D and colorectal cancer have been conducted. We have aimed to evaluate articles that assessed the correlation of plasma 25(OH)D with risk of colorectal cancers in Asian population. The search for studies was conducted using Medline via Pubmed. Overall, 646 potential articles were identified, and after screening, 2 articles met eligible criteria for inclusion. Evidence suggest that plasma 25(OH)D levels may have inverse relationsip with colorectal cancer, but spesifically rectal cancer, rather than colon cancer in both women and men. There is still a very high need in the future for high-quality studies that assess the correlation of plasma 25(OH)D to the risk of colorectal cancer in Asian population.