Vitamin D and Prostate Cancer: A Clinical Study Enrolling Subjects Undergoing Prostatectomy

The study population will be 80 adult men who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer who are scheduled to have their prostate surgically removed at either the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) or the Ralph H. Johnson VAMC, both located in Charleston, SC. The men will be randomized into two groups: one group will take vitamin D3 supplementation and the other will take a placebo. Blood levels of vitamin D3 will be obtained at the beginning of the study and again after two months, just prior to the surgical procedure (prostatectomy). Prostate tissue will be obtained from the surgical procedure and studied for the effect of vitamin D on the prostate cancer cells.

This study will enroll 80 (40 per study arm) subjects (\>18 years of age), recently diagnosed with prostate cancer (histologically documented adenocarcinoma of the prostate), who are scheduled to undergo prostatectomy. Eligible subjects will be recruited in the Urology Clinic at MUSC or Ralph H. Johnson VAMC. All subjects will be refered to the study by their Urologist. At the baseline visit, consent will be obtained before any study procedures are initiated. A blood sample will be obtained for 25(OH)D3 analysis. Subjects will be randomized to either the intervention group (vitamin D3 4000 IU daily) or the placebo group and take the study medication for approximately two months before their scheduled prostatectomy. The final study visit is the day of surgery. A blood sample for 25(OH)D3 analysis will be obtained. Prostate tissue will be collected from the Pathologist for (a) genomics (RNA sequencing) analysis; (b) proteomics (proteins, glycons and lipids) analysis and (c) Vitamin D Receptor (VDR) by immunohistochemistry.