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Health Sciences › Medicine › General Medicine
Principal Results of the VITamin D and OmegA-3 TriaL (VITAL)
and Updated Meta-analyses of Relevant Vitamin D Trials
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Overview
Paper Summary
Conflicts of Interest
Identified Weaknesses
Rating Explanation
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Paper Summary
Paperzilla title
High-Dose Vitamin D Doesn't Prevent Cancer or Heart Disease (But Might Help Cancer Survival?)
In a large randomized trial, daily high-dose vitamin D (2000 IU) did not prevent cancer or cardiovascular disease. However, it was associated with reduced cancer mortality after excluding the first two years of follow-up. Meta-analyses including VITAL data show similar results.
Possible Conflicts of Interest
Pharmavite LLC and Pronova BioPharma/BASF donated the study agents and placebos. Quest Diagnostics provided lab tests at no cost. However, the NIH sponsors played a role in the study's design and interpretation, but final decisions rested with the VITAL investigators. Authors submitted conflict of interest disclosures.
Identified Weaknesses
Limited generalizability of findings
While VITAL was a large and well-designed trial, it focused on primary prevention and a specific dose and regimen of vitamin D. The study population might already have had sufficient vitamin D for cardiovascular health, and other doses, regimens, or studying populations with pre-existing conditions might yield different results. The lack of effect on intermediate endpoints (lipids, inflammation) after one year suggests that mechanisms by which vitamin D might influence CVD were not substantially altered in this trial.
Rating Explanation
This was a large, well-designed randomized controlled trial which addressed an important clinical question. While the primary endpoints were null for incident cancer and CVD, the signal regarding cancer mortality warrants further investigation. The transparency about limitations and funding sources strengthens the study's credibility.
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File Information
Original Title:
Principal Results of the VITamin D and OmegA-3 TriaL (VITAL)
and Updated Meta-analyses of Relevant Vitamin D Trials
File Name:
nihms-1546285.pdf
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File Size:
0.55 MB
Uploaded:
July 28, 2025 at 02:53 PM
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