Vitamin B May Help Prevent Melanoma

Nicotinamide may be a promising and easily accessible option for melanoma prevention, according to a new review. The cost of nicotinamide, if taken at the recommended dose of 1 g per day, is $10 per month.
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The review assessed studies on the chemoprotective benefits of Nicotinamide icotinamide on DNA repair and skin cancer risk in human and animal populations. Their findings showed that nicotinamide enhanced the repair of DNA damage in melanocytes, modulated the inflammatory environment produced by ultraviolet radiation, and reduced ultraviolet-induced immunosuppression. In addition, the ONTRAC study found that nicotinamide reduced the incidence of actinic keratosis and nonmelanoma skin cancers (NMSC) in individuals at a high-risk for skin cancer.

“[Nicotinamide] is a promising and well-tolerated chemopreventive agent for patients at high risk of developing NMSC,” the reviewers concluded. “Based on current clinical evidence of the use of [nicotinamide] in NMSC and early in vitro studies conducted with melanocytes and melanoma cells, randomized placebo-controlled trials are now warranted to determine the efficacy and safety of [nicotinamide] for melanoma prevention in high-risk patients.”

—Melissa Weiss

Reference:

Minocha R, Damian DL, Halliday GM. Melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancer chemoprevention: A role for nicotinamide? [published online August 8, 2017]. Photodermatol Photoimmunol Photomed. https://doi.org/10.1111/phpp.12328.