A Dartmouth Medical School report published earlier this month provides scientific evidence that the use of calcium supplements reduces the chance of developing colorectal adenomas and subsequently cancer.
The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Jan. 14, "provides the most compelling evidence to date of the potential benefits of calcium in reducing adenomas, which are likely precursors of most colorectal cancer," according to a DMS press release.
Dr. John A. Baron, professor of medicine at DMS who led the study, said he wanted to provide scientific evidence that calcium is an anticarcinogen through a randomized study of humans. It had already been established in the 1980s that calcium is a potential anticarcinogen.
The DMS study shows that the use of calcium supplements reduces the chance of developing colorectal adenomas and subsequently cancer.
A colorectal adenoma is a polyp, "a raised bump the size of a pencil eraser," Baron said. He said although most polyps are benign, they can be a precursor to colon cancer, a type of colorectal cancer. Colon cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States.
Although the study could not fully show that calcium played a role in preventing colorectal cancer, it showed that calcium had a moderately successful rate in preventing the adenomas that can cause cancer.
According to the DMS release, colon cancer accounted for 10 percent of the deaths from cancer in 1998 -- 28,600 in woman and 27,900 in men.
Currently, doctors will remove adenomas if found in the colon, but, if left in place, only about 1 or 2 percent will progress to cancer.
The four-year study followed 832 patients, all of whom had at least one adenoma removed. Seventy-two percent of the patients were male and the average age of the subjects was 61.
As part of the study, the patients either took calcium carbonate supplements, 1,200 milligrams of elemental calcium, or a placebo, according to the DMS press release.
The most promising conclusion that can be drawn from this study is that it "suggests something as simple as taking a few tablets can prevent cancer," Baron said. "Calcium is probably safe and at least beneficial in other respects."
Colorectal cancer rarely effects college-aged students, "except for a few with hereditary symptoms," Baron said.
Baron recommended that students should eat a healthy diet that can help reduce the chance of getting cancer and other diseases.
Baron said colon cancer becomes a major issue for people over 50, but maintaining better eating habits can help.
