Hey Cynde and Blacklab,

Thanks for the headzup you've started the anti-inflammatory regimen.  The odds are clearly in your favor for a significant reduction in the frequency, severity and duration of your cluster headaches if not a complete cessation for a pain free response.

The only thing I suggest at this point is to ask your PCP for the lab test for 25(OH)D.  Even though you've already started this regimen, we can always work the curve backwards to estimate your starting serum concentration fo 25(OH)D.  Knowing your status at this point will take a lot of the guess work out of how long it can take for a favorable response.

In any event, please keep us posted on your results.  If you're not experiencing any improvement in a week to 10 days shoot me a pm.

Take care.

V/R, Batch

Gregg,

Good question.  The answer is it varies... 

I'm not a doctor...  However, from the data I've collected here at CH.com, the online survey, and countless studies read over the last two years, I'd say three lab tests for 25(OH)D the first year would be prudent.

If possible have the blood drawn for the 25(OH)D test then start the regimen.  If you can't do that, having this lab test done within the first week to 10 days of starting this regimen will also be helpful. 

A second lab test three months after starting this regimen should confirm the CH'er is in the green zone and a third test at the six month mark after starting this regimen should confirm a stable serum concentration around 85 ng/mL assuming the vitamin D3 intake has been 10,000 IU/day during that three month period. 

As long as the average vitamin D3 intake is 10,000 IU/day, the 25(OH)D lab results should plot out on the upper line in the following chart.

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After that, I'd get tested once a year assuming you stay on this regimen...   I'd also get this lab test any time you fall out of remission with a rash of cluster headaches.

Most of the vitamin D3 Jedi Masters who routinely treat patients with vitamin D3 therapy suggest a 25(OH)D lab test every three to six months and any time the dose of vitamin D3 exceeds 10,000 IU/day for more than two to three weeks.  Lab tests for total serum calcium and PTH (Parathyroid Hormone) would also be prudent if dosing on vitamin D3 over 10,000 IU/day.

Vitamin D3 intoxication is rare and I'm unaware of any reported deaths from it.  That said hyperparathyroidism (too much parathyroid hormone) sends the kidneys into warp drive causing them to metabolize 25(OH)D into 1,25(OH)2D3, the active hormonal form of vitamin D3 at too high a rate. 

When that happens, calcium homeostasis control mechanisms can break down allowing serum calcium levels to rise above the normal reference range.

CH'ers with sarcoidosis (we have one or two here at CH.dom) also need to test for 25(OH)D on a more frequent basis.

Hope this helps.

Take care,

V/R, Batch

All,

I was waiting for posts on the study linking Omega-3 to prostate cancer. 

We need to be critical when reviewing articles on study results like this...  I've yet to see the actual study results so will keep my powder dry as to the validity/applicability of this study.

That said, there are a few things to ponder... 

(1) This was the first and only study to go against the trend of so many other studies that found Omega-3 fatty acids helped prevent or slowed the progress of prostate cancer...

"A NEJM study in May 2013 found that men with a higher level of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood had a higher rate of advanced prostate cancer. This conflicts with results of prior studies. Do not to base your understanding of cause and effect results based only on one study since the results of others could show a different outcome."

(2) There are several fatty acids classified as "Omega-3"

"The fatty acids found in fish may slightly lower a man's risk of prostate cancer, but another type of fatty acid found in a range of foods may raise the risk, a large study suggests. Researchers found that among nearly 48,000 U.S. men followed for 14 years, those with the highest intakes of two fatty acids found in oily fish were 26 percent less likely than men with the lowest intakes to develop advanced prostate cancer. The opposite was true, however, when it came to alpha-linolenic acid, or ALA. Like the two fish-oil fats, ALA is an omega-3 unsaturated fatty acid that is thought to promote heart health; it is found in vegetable sources such as soybeans, canola oil, walnuts and flaxseed, and to a lesser extent in meat and dairy products. In this study, men with the highest intake of ALA were about twice as likely as those with the lowest intakes to develop advanced prostate cancer. And the risk was increased regardless of whether the ALA came from vegetable or animal sources, according to findings published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition."

"Dietary intake of n-3 (fish oils) and n-6 fatty acids and the risk of prostate cancer.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2004.
Laboratory studies have shown that n-3 fatty acids (mostly in fish oils) inhibit and n-6 fatty acids stimulate prostate cancer growth, but whether the dietary intake of these fatty acids affects prostate cancer risk in humans remains unclear. We prospectively evaluated the association between intakes of alpha-linolenic (ALA; 18:3n-3), eicosapentaenoic (EPA; 20:5n-3), docosahexaenoic (DHA; 22:6n-3), linoleic (LA; 18:2n-6), and arachidonic (AA; 20:4n-6) acids and prostate cancer risk. A cohort of 47 866 US men aged 40-75 y with no prostate cancer history in 1986 was followed for 14 y. During follow-up, 2965 new cases of total prostate cancer were ascertained, 448 of which were advanced prostate cancer. ALA intake was unrelated to the risk of total prostate cancer. In contrast, the multivariate relative risks (RRs) of advanced prostate cancer from comparisons of extreme quintiles of ALA from nonanimal sources and ALA from meat and dairy sources were 2.02 and 1.53, respectively. EPA and DHA intakes (fish oils) were related to lower prostate cancer risk.  Increased dietary intakes of ALA may increase the risk of advanced prostate cancer. In contrast, EPA and DHA (fish oils) intakes may reduce the risk of total and advanced prostate cancer."

(3) I have a couple long time friends and former squadron mates who are recovering from prostate cancer.  Both are taking 10,000 to 15,000 IU/day vitamin D3 to keep their 25(OH)D between 80 and 90 ng/mL.  They also take the cofactors, 1000 mg/day Omega-3 Fish Oil, and Curcumin.  They claim a few months after prostate surgery, radiation and chemo, their PSA started climbing again...  The above regimen reversed that trend and both now have normal PSA levels and have maintained them in the normal range for >5 years..

See the following link.  It puts much of this in perspective:

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Take care and hang in there... I suspect there will be other more qualified experts making a reclama to this latest study.

V/R, Batch