If you get the feeling that you're reading and hearing a lot about vitamin D lately, you're not alone. This vitamin has been receiving quite a bit of press lately, and with good reason. The last few years have seen an explosion of research on this nutrient and the conclusions of these studies pretty much agree: vitamin D is very important for long-term health and most of us don't get nearly enough of it.

Want to reduce your risk of cancer? Get more D. Want to reduce your risk of heart disease? Get more D. Want to minimize your odds of getting multiple sclerosis, lupus, or other autoimmune conditions? Get more D. Want to better manage your asthma and other respiratory conditions? Again, get your vitamin D! It's the rare (OK, never) time that I say, "Everyone needs this supplement," but vitamin D is one nutrient for which I make an exception.

A study presented at the 2009 American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting now suggests this is true for individuals with cancer, especially those with gastrointestinal (GI) cancers.

For the vitamin D study, which included 98 people with colorectal cancer, the researchers reviewed medical charts of people treated for GI cancer between December 2007 and September 2009. They found that at baseline, nearly 90% of the patients had vitamin D deficiency. That's the bad news.

The good news is that the chart review also uncovered success. When the people with GI cancer were prescribed vitamin D supplements, most of them responded: Their blood levels of vitamin D increased markedly after 8-12 weeks of supplementation. The patients were given 50,000 IU (international units) of vitamin D, once per week, for a total of 8-12 weeks.

When blood levels of vitamin D were rechecked after supplementation, the rate of any vitamin D deficiency, including very mild deficiency, decreased from 91% to 57%. Cases of severe to moderate deficiency decreased from 72% to 13%.

Is D for Me?

Yes, but with caution. The 50,000 IU dose that was used to bring vitamin D levels up to normal are very, very high. These doses are safe, when taken short-term, under close medical supervision. Never supplement with 50,000 IU of vitamin D on your own. Work with your medical care team so that your blood levels can be checked and you can know your body is responding to the supplements as intended.

If you want to supplement with vitamin D for general good health and to make sure you are getting enough, it is safe to take up to 2,000 IU of vitamin D per day. Fortunately, vitamin D is inexpensive, so taking a supplement won't break the bank. A 30 day supply costs about $3 to $5. If you are in cancer treatment and you are concerned about your vitamin D levels, ask your doctor to be tested. A simple blood test will tell you whether you need higher doses of supplements to get yourself back up to normal.

On August 24-26, 2009, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will be holding a State-of-the-Science conference on how family history can be used to improve health and health care in the United States. The conference is being held at the NIH Natcher Conference Center in Bethesda, Maryland. And if Maryland isn't on your summer vacation agenda, you don't need to worry: You can participate in the conference online.

What does this have to do with me?

The NIH organized this meeting specifically to help a wide range of people, from health care providers and researchers to interested citizens, better understand and utilize family health history to manage risk of a variety of diseases, including cancer. Many cases of cancer, including colon cancer, are considered sporadic, meaning they are not related to genetics or family history. However, up to 25% of colon cancer cases occur in people with a family history of the disease or who have a known "cancer gene".

In these situations, the lack of a standardized way for health care providers to collect, and for patients to provide, a family health history, can contribute to people being diagnosed later, when disease is more advanced and harder to treat. This is where the NIH State-of-the-Science conference steps in, to fill in the gaps and to improve health care delivery. If you have a family history of colon cancer, or any other disease, or even if you're just interested in this topic, be sure to take advantage of this free, open-to-the-public conference, either in person, or through the internet.

As someone who cares deeply about cancer prevention, news today that obesity rates continue to climb in both adults and children is disheartening. Quite simply, as a country, we are going in the wrong direction with obesity and overweight. When it comes to colon cancer, the ever-increasing obesity rates are especially problematic. If even one colon cancer case can be prevented by raising awareness of the strong connection between obesity and this disease, then it's worth it to me to continue writing and blogging about this important topic.

As mentioned in my June 18th blog, obesity and overweight are among the most important, modifiable risk factors for colon cancer. Modifiable means something that we can control with the choices we make everyday.

Each and every one of us, by making better food choices, walking instead of sitting, biking instead of driving, and making a whole host of other health decisions, can control our own body weight and reduce our own risk of colon cancer. We can help reduce the rates of colon cancer in our country too, by addressing our collective struggles with overweight and obesity.

I've mentioned this previously as well: Health experts estimate that about 30% of all colon cancer cases in the United States are directly due to people having a body mass index (BMI) greater than 22.5 kilograms per meter squared (kg/m2).

Using our BMI calculator, you'll quickly see that a BMI of 22.5 is not particularly high. In other words, you have to be pretty fit and thin to maintain a BMI of 22.5. For a woman, a BMI of 22.5 translates into being 5'4" (64 inches) tall and weighing about 131 pounds. For a man, a BMI of 22.5 translates into being 5'11" (71 inches) tall and weighing about 161 pounds.

As you read this, you may be thinking, "who actually has a BMI of 22.5?" In a small bit of self-disclosure, I'll admit my BMI is about 21.2 kg/m2. And I don't say this to "brag", because in fact, at one point in my adult life, at 5' 4" tall and about 170 pounds, my BMI was an unhealthy 28.9 kg/m2!

When I talk to people about a healthy diet and regular exercise, I sometimes receive feedback that I must be "lucky" and must be "naturally thin". Phew, I wish that were the case. In reality, I think about maintaining my weight each and every day. It's a lot of work, but my health is worth it. Reducing my own risk of colon and other cancers, as well as heart disease, diabetes and more, is worth it. I'm worth it and SO ARE YOU!

Since this is a blog about colon cancer, I don't want to get too side tracked talking about weight management, but I encourage everyone to think about how important it is to avoid being overweight or obese in order to reduce colon cancer risk. Other than regular colon cancer screening, nothing is more important for reducing colon cancer risk than staying at a healthy body weight.

And even if you never reach a BMI of 22.5, every single pound that you lose and keep off will improve your health. Even 5 or 10 pounds can markedly improve health! Take a moment to peruse the About.com Weight Loss website, where you'll find news, information, and tons of great ideas you can incorporate into your life today, to put you on the path to a healthy weight and lower colon cancer risk.

Remember, anyone can learn (and it does take learning!) how to live more healthfully, despite the fact that we live in a society that is designed to make us "fat". Between the advertisements; the cheap, tasty junk food available at every turn; the lack of communities being designed in a way that allows for walking and biking; and our hectic, cram-too-much-into-every-moment lifestyles, it's no surprise that close to 70% of us are overweight or obese. But investing in your health is worth the effort! I've been there (overweight). I understand your pain. I know you can live healthier too.

For a person with metastatic colon cancer, which is colon cancer that has spread beyond the colon to other parts of the body, the situation may feel hopeless and overwhelming. But a recently published review of survival rates after metastatic colon cancer diagnosis brings new hope that this disease can be more effectively managed with newer treatment options. The results of this review, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology online May 26, 2009, indicate that in the period from 1990 through 2006, the length of survival after metastatic colon cancer diagnosis has improved dramatically.

Between 1990 and 1997, the researchers noted that the median, overall length of survival held steady at 14.2 months. However, in the following years, median survival improved notably, to 18 months from 1998 to 2000, and then to 18.6 months from 2001 to 2003. The overall median length of survival improved most dramatically, to 29.2 months, for patients diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer from 2004 to 2006. Also encouraging is that the 5-year survival rate more than doubled from 9.1% in the early years of the study to 19.2% for patients diagnosed in 2001 to 2003. The improvements in survival are due to a combination of more effective chemotherapy medications and surgery to remove colon tumors that have spread to the liver.

Years of Life

The bottom line is that even after receiving an original diagnosis of metastatic colon cancer, good treatment can allow patients to live meaningful lives for years, rather than weeks and months. This may seem like small comfort to someone facing a diagnosis of metastatic colon cancer, but it points toward the day when metastatic colon cancer may become a chronic, manageable condition, rather than a life-shortening disease.

If you've been diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer, be sure you talk to your doctor about all of the treatment options you should consider. New research breakthroughs are being made daily and you may even want to find out if a clinical trial is right for you. Be sure to discuss the pros and cons of clinical trials with your health care team.