Can taking a supplement help you avoid recurrence of some skin cancers? Elizabeth Tracey reports

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Nicotinamide is one of a group of vitamins known as B vitamins, and it’s available over the counter. A new study shows that in people who’ve had either a basal cell or squamous cell cancer, common types of skin cancer, nicotinamide reduces the risk of recurrence. Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center director William Nelson explains.

Nelson: So they can go look at the VA system and in their records they can see who got a basal cell carcinoma or squamous carcinoma on their skin who then received that prescription. Had some sense that they took the thing so they get at least one prescription and it's like 500 milligrams twice a day for 30 days. And if you got that what was the result? Could they tell and it looked like in this setting when given this after the first surgical removal of a basal cell or squamous cell it did appear to reduce appearance of a second squamous carcinoma reasonably substantially.         :32

Nelson says the effect did not persist if the supplement was taken after the second skin cancer. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.