Vitamin D supplements may help prevent immunotherapy induced colitis
Immune checkpoint inhibitors is new immunotherapy which is an effective revolutionary form of anti-cancer treatment option for treating cancer but is associated with a common potentially serious side effect i.e. colitis.
New research indicates that taking vitamin D supplements may help prevent immunotherapy induced colitis .
The findings of the study have been are published online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society (ACS).
The researchers conducted the study because previous studies have found that vitamin D may affect the immune system in cases of autoimmune disorders and inflammatory bowel disease
Immune checkpoint inhibitors help the immune system recognize and combat cancer cells, and although these treatments have helped many patients and have prolonged lives, they can cause side effects such as colitis, an inflammatory reaction in the colon. "Immune checkpoint inhibitor-induced colitis can limit the use of such life-saving drugs leading to discontinuation of treatment. While it is one of the most common and severe adverse events of immunotherapy, there is a lack of understanding of the risk factors that could be modified to prevent colitis," said Osama Rahma, MD, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, in Boston.
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