Lung cancer is one of the deadliest of all cancers for both men and women -- more than 160,000 people die from the disease each year. However, there may be a silver lining to this dark cloud of statistics: Undergoing lung cancer surgery during a sunny time of year may improve one's chances of survival.

Why? Vitamin D.

Researchers found that patients who had surgery for early-stage lung cancer did better if they went under the knife during the sunnier part of the year or took a high dose of vitamin D prior to surgery. In fact, patients who had surgery during the sunniest part of the year and consumed a higher amount of vitamin D more than doubled their chances of survival beyond the five-year mark compared to patients who had surgeries in the winter and took a lesser amount of the vitamin.

Sun, Vitamin D, and Survival
In their study, researchers analyzed some 450 patients (average age 69) with early stage and non-small lung cancer (80 percent had stage I cancer and the remaining 20 percent had more advanced stage II cancer). All of the patients had surgery to remove the cancer while 9 percent also received radiation and 1 percent received chemotherapy. Five-year survival rates were 25 percent higher for those who went under the knife in the spring, summer or fall, compared to those who had surgery in the winter. Statistically, survival rates were:

* Summer surgeries: 59 percent
* Spring/fall surgeries: 57 percent
* Winter surgeries: 50 percent

Moreover, those who had the highest intake of vitamin D were 28 percent less likely to die. The five-year survival rate for those who had surgery in the summer and had the highest intake of vitamin D was 72 percent, compared to 30 percent for those who had surgery in the winter and the lowest vitamin D intake. While researchers do not recommend putting off lung cancer surgery until warmer months, they do advise increasing vitamin D intake for its survival benefits.

Forbes April 19, 2005

So what can you really glean from this study? That researchers are continuing to find out the importance of Vitamin D and sunshine. There have been consistent findings over the last few years showing that vitamin D is essential, and the best way for your body to make it is through sunshine. Don't forget to get outside and get 15 minutes of sunshine a day. That doesn't mean to bathe in the sun. Get out take a walk, work in the yard, or just sit outside and have a cup of herbal tea in the morning. Find a way to soak up the sun and all its health-giving benefits.

Where fat comes from determines whether the body can metabolize it effectively. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that the "old" fat stored in the body's peripheral tissues -- that is, around the belly, thighs or bottom -- can't be burned efficiently unless "new" fat is eaten in the diet or made in the liver.

The research team developed genetically engineered mice missing an important fat synthesizing enzyme in the liver. As a result, the mice, called FASKOL mice (Fatty Acid Synthase KnockOut in Liver), could not produce new fatty acids in the liver. Because liver fatty acids are vital for maintaining normal sugar, fat and cholesterol metabolism, these mice must take in dietary fat to remain healthy. Reporting in the May issue of the journal Cell Metabolism, the researchers say these mice developed fatty liver disease when placed on a zero fat diet. "When we took dietary fat away from the FASKOL mice, their livers quickly filled with fat," says senior investigator Clay F. Semenkovich, M.D., professor of medicine and of cell biology and physiology. "Their 'old' fat stores mobilized to the liver, but their livers could not initiate fat burning, and the fat just accumulated. We concluded that to regulate fat burning, the liver needs 'new' fat."

New fat is the fat that is consumed in food or is newly made in the liver as glucose is converted to fat. When the system takes in high amounts of glucose, fatty acid synthase in the liver makes it into new fat. In addition to fatty livers, the transgenic mice developed low blood sugar levels on the zero fat diet. Both symptoms were reversed with dietary fat, and in fact on a normal diet, the transgenic mice were no different than normal mice in terms of body weight, body fat, metabolic rate and food intake.

The liver is very important for processing nutrients consumed in the diet and sending them on to the rest of the body. Abnormal processing of glucose or lipids in the liver contributes to problems of type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis, and fatty liver disease often is seen in people who are obese or suffer from insulin resistance. "There's also good evidence that the liver plays a key role in mediating cardiovascular risk through the secretion of multiple proteins associated with inflammation," Semenkovich says. The researchers found that new fat seems to solve those problems. The research team is now trying to identify fats that could be given in small amounts to activate the breakdown of old fat. They also are studying liver cells and fat cells to see how the liver can tell the difference between old fat and new fat. Eventually, Semenkovich believes these findings could lead to more effective strategies for the treatment of obesity, type 2 diabetes and other metabolic problems. For now, he says that dieters who want to lose fat stored in peripheral tissues may find it useful to take in small amounts of dietary fats, such as fish oils, that might more effectively activate fat burning pathways through the liver.

From Washington University.