The Finnish study involved 29,133 male smokers, ages 50 to 69, who had been selected to take part in a lung cancer study evaluating the effect of beta carotene and vitamin E on smokers. The men were divided into four groups. The vitamin E dosage was 50 mg a day, which is the equivalent of 50 international units. After five to eight years on the supplements, Albanes said, the 14,564 men taking vitamin E alone or with beta carotene had 32 percent fewer cases of prostate cancer than the 14,569 who did not take vitamin E. Additionally, there were 41 percent fewer prostate cancer deaths among men taking vitamin E, the researcher said. Taking the vitamin E supplement, however, was not risk-free, said Albanes.
Vitamin E is known to have some effect on blood clotting.
Although the finding for vitamin E is encouraging, he said it is premature to recommend that everybody start taking vitamin E supplements. Albanes said there needs to be another long-term study involving nonsmokers and people of different races and ethnic backgrounds. The Finns in the study, he said, were all smokers and all white men. But to get 50 IU of vitamin E from such foods, he said, would mean taking in a great deal of extra dietary fat, which may not be beneficial.