Vitamin D and colorectal cancer: Chemopreventive perspectives through the gut microbiota and the immune system

Abstract

Vitamin D and its receptor are involved in health and diseases through multiple mechanisms including the immune system and gut microbiota modulations. Gut microbiota variations have huge implications in intestinal and extra‐intestinal disorders such as colorectal cancer (CRC). This review highlights the preventive role of vitamin D in colorectal tumorigenesis through the effects on the immune system and gut microbiota modulation. The different associations between vitamin D, gut microbial homeostasis, immune system, and CRC, are dissected. Vitamin D is supposed to exert several chemopreventive effects on CRC including direct antineoplastic mechanisms, the effects on the immune system, and gut microbiota modulation. Large clinical studies with a randomized design, are required to confirm the role of vitamin D in CRC, confirming its key role in the complex interplay between the gut immune system and microbiota.