Preprint
Hypothesis

The Hypercalcemic Effect of Vitamin D3 in Sarcoidosis Could Be a Side Effect of an Endogenous Program Organizing Cancer Apoptosis

This version is not peer-reviewed.

Submitted:

18 September 2017

Posted:

18 September 2017

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Abstract
The cause of sarcoidosis is unknown, and vitamin D is contraindicated to treat the condition. We therefore ask what causes sarcoidosis and why vitamin D can be dangerous for those so afflicted. We propose a contrary hypothesis: sarcoidosis is a physiological process of defense against cancer that requires the substrate vitamin D. We tested this hypothesis, finding many case reports involving sarcoidosis and cancer—further cases of cancer mimicry by sarcoidosis. Several reports describe spontaneous healing of cancer in the presence of sarcoidosis. In the context of the granulomas of sarcoidosis, monocytes are the site of vitamin D release. Furthermore, active vitamin D can control cancer cells by using the vitamin D receptors of the nucleus. That granulomas consistently do not caseate is explained as a confrontation with human molecules and the cancer cells’ complete absorption. The striking fact that granulomas of sarcoidosis mostly lack cancerous cells is interpreted as a result of a well-functioning sarcoidosis process. We view the typical sarcoidosis monocytic synthesis of active vitamin D as a successful defense against cancer: a theory we call the “endogenous program organizing cancer apoptosis” (EPOCA).
Keywords: 
sarcoidosis; monocytes; cancer; neoplasia; vitamin D; 25-hydroxyvitamin D3; 1,25-hydroxyvitamin D3; etiology; spontaneous remission of cancer; vitamin D side effects
Subject: 
Medicine and Pharmacology  -   Dietetics and Nutrition
Copyright: This open access article is published under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, which permit the free download, distribution, and reuse, provided that the author and preprint are cited in any reuse.

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