Vitamin B derivative reduces risk for further skin cancer, says Australian study
An over-the-counter vitamin B₃ product has been shown to significantly reduce the risk of developing further skin cancers in patients who have already been diagnosed with non-melanoma skin cancer, according to a study.
Senior study author Diona Damian, MBBS, PhD, professor of dermatology at the Dermatology University of Sydney in Australia said this was "the first clear evidence that we can reduce skin cancers using a simple vitamin, together with sensible skin protection."
The finding, from the Australian ONTRAC (Oral Nicotinamide to Reduce Actinic Cancer) study, was presented during a press briefing held in advance of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2015 Annual Meeting. The results show that patients who took nicotinamide 500mg twice daily for one year showed a 23% reduction in new diagnoses of nonmelanoma skin cancer, compared with those who took placebo (P = .02). Specifically, new diagnoses of basal cell carcinoma were reduced by 20%, squamous cell carcinoma by 30%, and actinic keratoses by 13%. During the year-long study, the patients in the placebo group developed a median of 2.5 new skin cancers, whereas those in the nicotinamide group had a median of 1.77 new cancers.
