Vitamin E and C supplementation and risk of cancer in men: posttrial follow-up in the Physicians' Health Study II randomized trial.
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ABSTRACT: Recent posttrial analysis of a completed randomized trial found an increased risk of prostate cancer among healthy men taking high-dose vitamin E supplements. Trials that examined the effect of vitamin C supplements on cancer risk are few.We examined whether vitamin E or vitamin C supplementation affects the risk of cancer events during posttrial follow-up of the Physicians' Health Study II.Beginning in 1997, a total of 14,641 US male physicians aged ?50 y were randomly assigned to receive 400 IU of vitamin E every other day, 500 mg of vitamin C daily, or their respective placebos. The vitamin E and vitamin C treatment ended in 2007, and observational follow-up continued through June 2011.This study included an additional 356 cases of incident prostate cancer and 771 total cancers that developed during a mean (maximum) of 2.8 (3.8) y of posttrial observation. During an overall mean of 10.3 (13.8) y, there were a total of 1373 incident prostate cancers and 2669 total cancers documented. In comparison with placebo, vitamin E supplementation had no effect on the incidence of prostate cancer (HR: 0.99; 95% CI: 0.89, 1.10) or total cancers (HR: 1.02; 95% CI: 0.95, 1.10). There was also no effect of vitamin C supplementation on total cancers (HR: 1.02; 95% CI: 0.94, 1.10) or incident prostate cancer (HR: 1.03; 95% CI: 0.93, 1.15). Neither vitamin E nor vitamin C supplementation had effects on other site-specific cancers overall. Stratification by known cancer risk factors, history of cancer, other randomized treatment, and follow-up time showed no significant interactions.In this large-scale randomized trial in men, vitamin E and C supplementation had no immediate or long-term effects on the risk of total cancers, prostate cancer, or other site-specific cancers.
SUBMITTER: Wang L
PROVIDER: S-EPMC4135500 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Sep
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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