Vitamin K Slashes Risks of Cancer of Lymphatic System

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is a type of cancer that starts in the lymphatic system, and the disease actually is comprised of 29 different forms of lymphoma. Vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) is a fat soluble vitamin found mainly in green leafy vegetables, with smaller amounts found in other vegetables, vegetable oils, and some fruits. In that Vitamin K compounds have been found to affect proteins involved in coagulation, inhibit inflammatory cytokines, and contribute to cellular processes that inhibit the pathways that promote lymph cancer, James Cerhan, from Mayo Clinic (Minnesota, USA), and colleagues studied 603 men and women who were newly diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, surveying their dietary habits and ascertaining daily Vitamin K intake levels, comparing the data to 1,007 healthy control subjects with no cancer.  The team found that the risk of developing non-Hodgkin lymphoma was approximately 45% lower in people with a vitamin K intake of at least 108 micrograms a day, as compared with people with an intake of less than 39 micrograms per day.  The researchers conclude that: “Higher intake of vitamin K from the diet was inversely associated with risk of [Non-Hodgkin lymphoma] overall and for the major subtypes  … suggest[ing] that the coagulation pathway or other biologic effects of vitamin K may play a role in lymphomagenesis.”