Vitamins & Carcinogenesis

Diet and nutritional status are modifiable factors that play a prominent role in determining the risk of developing certain cancers in humans. The consistency of evidence from epidemiologic studies is most compelling for fruits and vegetables, with increased consumption being inversely associated with the risk of developing a variety of different cancers. Cancer prevention, as opposed to cancer treatment, is a very attractive means of diminishing the burden of cancer in our society; appropriate alterations in dietary and nutritional habits clearly have an important potential in this regard. The nutrients involved in one-carbon metabolism (methionine, choline and the B-vitamins, folate, B12, B6, and B2) have drawn considerable attention with regard to their potential for human cancer prevention, and are the focus of this laboratory. The overall goal of this laboratory is to examine the complex roles that diet plays in modifying metabolic and genetic pathways that lead to human carcinogenesis and thereby define the means by which cancers can be nutritionally prevented. The program of research emphasizes how these dietary compounds interact with genetic background to modify molecular and signaling pathways which alter the development of cancers and to examine how other exogenous factors, such as alcohol consumption also play a role. Animal studies, cell culture studies, and human studies are all methods that are used by this laboratory.

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For more information about the Vitamins & Carcinogenesis Laboratory, please visit the USDA, Agricultural Research Service.

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Questioning Folic Acid Fortification
Colorectal cancer rates went up just as folic acid was added to enriched grains, researchers say