Newswise — Vitamin D, often called "the sunshine vitamin", is not a vitamin at all, but rather a versatile hormone produced by the body in response to sunlight. Candace S. Johnson, PhD, at Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI), is a key opinion leader and pioneer in vitamin D and cancer research.
Using a translational research approach, Dr. Johnson and her team of researchers from the basic sciences to cancer prevention and the clinic are working in concert to investigate the anti-cancer properties of vitamin D. Roswell Park is one of only a few facilities in the country that is able to investigate the potential of novel therapeutic cancer drugs from conception to development. This research is funded by, among others, the National Cancer Institute and the Department of Defense, among other groups.
Dr. Johnson recently co-authored with Donald L. Trump, MD, FACP, President & CEO of Roswell Park, an in-depth analysis of the value of vitamin D in cancer prevention and treatment, in a review article published in the journal Nature Reviews Cancer.
Dr. Johnson's research focuses on translational research to facilitate the efficient application of promising laboratory findings in clinical studies, preclinical design, and development of effective therapeutic approaches using highly characterized tumor models and mechanisms of vitamin D-mediated antiproliferative and antiangiogenic effects, either alone or in combination with other cytotoxic agents. Dr. Johnson's laboratory was the first to show that a vitamin D-like compound (calcitriol) inhibits the growth of prostate cancer. She has authored or co-authored more than 150 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters and abstracts.
At Roswell Park, Dr. Johnson serves as the Robert, Anne and Lew Wallace Chair in Translational Research and Chair of the Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics. She is a member of the National Institutes of Health Reviewers Reserve and has served as a member of Experimental Therapeutics Study Section (2), Division of Research Grants, National Institutes of Health and as a member of the National Cancer Institute Review Group Subcommittee A Cancer Center (Parent Committee).
Dr. Johnson also is a member of many professional and scientific societies. She serves as Associate Editor of Molecular and Cellular Differentiation, Oncology and Molecular Pharmacology. She has been issued patents on the "Use of Pretreatment Chemicals to Enhance Efficacy of Cytotoxic Agents" and "Endothelial Specific Targeting" with a patent pending on the "Method of Treating Solid Tumors and Leukemias Using Combination Therapy of Vitamin D and Anti-Metabolic Nucleoside Analogs."
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