Folic acid doesn’t cut risk of colon polyps: study
One hypothesis is that folic acid can help ensure DNA replicates correctly, which in theory could decrease the risk of cancer. But there’s also been some concern that high doses of folic acid can feed the growth of pre-cancerous polyps in people who already have them.
Baron, who wasn’t involved in the study, told Reuters h\Health those worries are “largely theoretical,” but they are a reason not to go overboard with folic acid nonetheless.
He added that the combined data don’t support the protective effects of B vitamins, over and above what’s in a normal diet, on the colon.
“Most people in the U.S. are reasonably well nourished, and with folic acid supplementation now there’s not serious concern about folate deficiency,” he said.
People who have had risky, possibly pre-cancerous polyps removed from their colon may be able to wait up to five years until their next colonoscopy, a new study from Germany suggests.
Recommendations from the American Cancer Society and other organizations call for a follow-up colonoscopy three years after large or risky adenomas are removed to check for further signs of cancer.
Extending that timeframe to five years may mean more colonoscopies could be done in people who really need them - such as older adults who’ve never been screened for colon cancer, researchers wrote Monday in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. The procedures run about $1,000.
But researchers not involved in the new study argued that it’s too early to loosen the timeline for follow-up colon exams.
“Patients with high-risk polyps are at increased risk for developing colon cancer and their tumors may grow faster,” said Dr. Benjamin Lebwohl, who studies colon cancer screening at Columbia University Medical Center in New York.
“This study provides a measure of reassurance to patients and gastroenterologists,” he told Reuters Health. “It appears that those patients with high-risk polyps were similarly protected against colon cancer even beyond the three-year interval.”
“For general health, a usual diet for most people is sufficient. Taking large doses (of folic acid) is, at a minimum, wasteful.”
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SOURCE: bit.ly/AoyC3l