Calcium's lingering effect slows growths.Taking calcium supplements protects against colorectal cancer colorectal cancer Malignant tumour of the large intestine (colon) or rectum. Risk factors include age (after age 50), family history of colorectal cancer, chronic inflammatory bowel diseases, benign polyps, physical inactivity, and a diet high in fat. even years after a person stops taking them, a study finds. Starting in the early 1990s, scientists randomly assigned 930 patients with a history of precancerous precancerous /pre·can·cer·ous/ (-kan´ser-us) pertaining to a pathologic process that tends to become malignant. pre·can·cer·ous adj. growths in the colon or rectum to receive either a daily calcium tablet or an inert pill. Researchers ended the calcium supplementation calcium supplementation Metabolism The addition of Ca2+ to the diet, usually in the form of calcium carbonate in 1997. Over the subsequent 5 years, participants regularly completed follow-up questionnaires about health and lifestyle, and 597 participants had colonoscopies. The data showed that people who had been in the calcium group had only two-thirds as many precancerous colorectal growths, often called polyps Polyps A tumor with a small flap that attaches itself to the wall of various vascular organs such as the nose, uterus and rectum. Polyps bleed easily, and if they are suspected to be cancerous they should be surgically removed. , as did people in the placebo group, says John A. Baron of Dartmouth Medical School Dartmouth Medical School is the medical school of Dartmouth College, in Hanover, New Hampshire. The school is closely affiliated with Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in neighboring Lebanon, New Hampshire. in Hanover, N.H. The role of diet in cancer is poorly understood, Baron notes. For example, some research suggests that calcium supplements might increase the risk of prostate cancer, although Baron's data suggest the opposite. "This issue needs to be put to rest before we [can] make a broad recommendation" regarding calcium supplements, he says.--N.S. |
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