Bone Abstracts

Recent studies suggest the link between low vitamin D levels and the prevalence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension and a number of different types of cancer. Nowadays, vitamin D deficiency is recognized as a pandemic health problem and pediatric cancer patients may be even at higher risk than the healthy children. Children suffered from malignancy are especially exposed to its deficiency, because of the potential impact of the disease and its treatment. However, there have been limited studies of the 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) status in childhood cancer patients. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the serum level of (25(OH)D) in children treated for childhood cancer before and during the chemotherapy.

Methods: The study group consisted of 28 children with cancer (male: 19, female: 9). Mean age at diagnosis: 4.99±3.91 years. Mean time between examinations: 5.94±1.2 months. Children were treated for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (n=19), lymphoma (n=4), solid tumors (n=5). The 25(OH)D level was assessed using the immunochemical method. Statistical analysis was performed using Wilcoxon rank sum test and χ² test.

Results: Analysis for paired observations showed that mean level of 25(OH)D was significantly higher during therapy (29.25±14.5 ng/ml) than before the treatment (22.25±11.91 ng/ml) P=0.022. The (25(OH)D) deficiency (20-30 ng/ml) was found in 11 (39%) children before and in 13 (46%) patients during chemotherapy. While the (25(OH)D) insufficiency (<20 ng/ml) was observed in 12 subjects (43%) before and in 7 (25%) patients during treatment. No statistical differences between the number of (25(OH)D)-insufficient and (25(OH)D)-deficient patients in both study points were found (P>0.05).

Conclusions: Vitamin D supplementation in children treated for cancer significantly increases the mean level of vitamin D during the anticancer treatment. However, the number of vitamin D-insufficient and vitamin D-deficient patients did not change in the course of treatment. Further studies in this field is needed.

Disclosure: The authors declared no competing interests.