J Nutr Sci Vitaminol, 59, 365, 2013
Letter to the Editor
Vitamin B6 and Its Effect on Systemic Carcinogenesis
To the Editor:
The recent article by Okazaki et al. provided for highly
stimulating and interesting reading (1). Vitamin B6 may
attenuate the risk of development and progression of
other systemic malignancies.
For instance, vitamin B6 reduces the risk of develop-
ing breast malignancies. In one recent study, the odds
ratio was 0.46 for the highest quartile versus lowest
quartile for dietary vitamin B6 consumption (2). Zhang
et al. have confirmed this in another recent study (3).
Interestingly, the estrogen receptor as well as the proges-
terone receptor status of the patient does not influence
this negative impact of vitamin B6 on breast cancer risk.
Serum vitamin B6 levels also influence the risk of devel-
oping pancreatic malignancies. The risk of developing
pancreatic cancer is reduced in an inverse proportion
to serum vitamin B6 levels in individuals not consuming
any multivitamins. An odds ratio of 0.8 was observed in
one recent study (4).
A negative relationship is also seen between vitamin
B6 metabolism and the risk for pulmonary malignan-
cies. Pyridoxal kinase plays a vital role in these anti-
neoplastic effects (5). In addition, vitamin B6 augments
the chemo-sensitivity of lung cancers to other chemo-
therapeutic agents such as cisplatin. In patients with
non-squamous cell lung carcinomas a direct relation-
ship is observed between clinical prognosis and pyri-
doxal kinase levels. Vitamin B6 levels also influence the
risk of carcinogenesis in cervical tissue. For instance,
low vitamin B6 levels have been noted in patients with
cervical carcinoma (6).
The above examples clearly illustrate the possible role
of vitamin B6 in mitigating systemic carcinogenesis and
the need for further studies to look into this aspect of
oncology.
Shailendra Kapoor MD
74 Crossing Place,
Mechanicsville, VA, USA
Email shailendrakapoor@yahoo.com
365
REFERENCES
1) Okazaki, Y, Utama, Z, Suidasari, S, Zhang, P, Yanaka, N,
Tomotake, H, Sakaguchi, E, Kato, N. 2012. Consump-
tion of vitamin B6 reduces fecal ratio of lithocholic acid
to deoxycholic acid, a risk factor for colon cancer, in rats
fed a high-fat diet. J Nutr Sci Vitaminol 58: 366–370.
2) Zhang, CX, Ho, SC, Chen, YM, Lin, FY, Fu, JH, Cheng,
SZ. 2011. Dietary folate, vitamin B6, vitamin B12 and
methionine intake and the risk of breast cancer by oes-
trogen and progesterone receptor status. Br J Nutr 106:
936–943.
3) Zhang, SM, Willett, WC, Selhub, J, Hunter, DJ, Giovan-
nucci, EL, Holmes, MD, Colditz, GA, Hankinson, SE.
2003. Plasma folate, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, homocys-
teine, and risk of breast cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst 95:
373–380.
4) Schernhammer, E, Wolpin, B, Rifai, N, Cochrane, B,
Manson, JA, Ma, J, Giovannucci, E, Thomson, C, Stamp-
fer, MJ, Fuchs, C. 2007. Plasma folate, vitamin B6, vita-
min B12, and homocysteine and pancreatic cancer risk in
four large cohorts. Cancer Res 67: 5553–5560. [PMID:
17545639 DOI:10.1158/0008–5472.CAN-06–4463].
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Fouret, P, Robin, A, Dorvault, N, Girard, P, Gouy, S, Pau-
tier, P, Jagemann, N, Nickel, AC, Marsili, S, Paccard, C,
Servant, N, Hupe, P, Behrens, C, Behnam-Motlagh, P,
Kohno, K, Cremer, I, Damotte, D, Alifano, M, Midttun, O,
Ueland, PM, Lazar, V, Dessen, P, Zischka, H, Chatelut, E,
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Sautes-Fridman, C, Zitvogel, L, Soria, JC, Harel-Bellan,
A, Kroemer, G. 2012. Prognostic impact of vitamin B6
metabolism in lung cancer. Cell Rep 2: 257–269.
6) Ramaswamy, PG, Natarajan, R. 1984. Vitamin B6 status
in patients with cancer of the uterine cervix. Nutr Can-
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(Received May 7, 2013)