Mechanistic Effects of Calcitriol in Cancer Biology

Besides its classical biological effects on calcium and phosphorus homeostasis, calcitriol, the active vitamin D metabolite, has a broad variety of actions including anticancer effects that are mediated either transcriptionally and/or via non-genomic pathways. In the context of cancer, calcitriol regulates the cell cycle, induces apoptosis, promotes cell differentiation and acts as anti-inflammatory factor within the tumor microenvironment. In this review, we address the different mechanisms of action involved in the antineoplastic effects of calcitriol.