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Mushroom Extracts

Several species of higher fungi have been used traditionally as well as in modern times in the treatment of cancer. The most commonly used medicinal mushrooms are Trametes versicolor (Turkey Tail, formerly Coriolus versicolor), Ganoderma lucidum (Reishi), Lentinus edodes, Grifola frondosa (Maitake), and Schizophyllum commune. Because of their broad immune activity, medicinal mushrooms are usually prescribed because of their immunomodulation activity. While other natural products from other plant species have known immunomodulatory activities, polysaccharides extracted from certain mushroom species have been the most thoroughly studied in pre-clinical and clinical studies.

Ganoderma (REISHI), Shiitake, Maiitake

These are mushrooms that have shown promising results as adjunctive therapy in pre-clinical research. However, lack of clear clinical data precludes us from recommending these extracts.

Trametes Versicolor

Trametes versicolor (T. versicolor), also known as Coriolus versicolor or Polyporus versicolor, has a long history of medical use in Asia dating back hundreds of years in traditional Asian medicine. It is the most widely studied of all medicinal mushrooms and there is a wealth of data published in Asia about its immune-modulatory effects, including clinical trials.

Efficacy

Trametes versicolor, has been assessed in phase I, II, and III randomized clinical trials in stomach, colorectal, esophageal, and breast cancer patients. Several clinical studies report significant immunologic and/or oncologic benefit of these fractions as adjunctive therapy in lung cancer patients gastrointestinal cancers, and breast cancer.

Clinical trials using active fractions of Trametes (namely PSK and PSP) published in Japan and Korea suggest that T. versicolor polysaccharide-peptide constituents improve disease-free and overall survival in several different types of cancer, including stomach, esophagus, lung, colorectal, prostate, and breast adenocarcinomas. In Japan, PSK is a therapy prescribed to cancer patients routinely, both during and after radiation and chemotherapy, and it is a cancer therapy approved by the Japanese National Health Registry. However, no clinical trials have yet been carried out in the US.

Safety

Toxicological assessments indicate that PSK and PSP have low toxicity with no reports of abnormalities in animals or humans following acute and chronic toxicity tests.

Recommendations

The strong clinical data for PSK / Trametes versicolor warrants its inclusion in secondary prevention planning and is routinely prescribed for cancer patients after completion of primary cancer treatment to restore and improve immune function. Many of the controlled trials conducted in Japan used PSK concurrently with chemotherapy showing improved outcomes relative to those cancer patients who received standard treatment alone. Several U.S companies make PSK-like medicinal mushroom products. Many integrative oncologists prescribe 3000-4500 mg of PSK™ or similar products after chemotherapy and radiation to restore immune status.

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  • Hobbs, C. (2004). "Medicinal Value of Turkey Tail Fungus Trametes versicolor (L.:Fr.) Pilat (Aphyllophoromycetideae)." International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms 6(3): 195-218.
  • Yeung, J. H., L. C. Chiu, et al. (1994). "Effect of polysaccharide peptide (PSP) on glutathione and protection against paracetamol-induced hepatotoxicity in the rat." Methods Find Exp Clin Pharmacol 16(10): 723-9.
  • Ng, T. B. and W. Y. Chan (1997). "Polysaccharopeptide from the mushroom Coriolus versicolor possesses analgesic activity but does not produce adverse effects on female reproductive or embryonic development in mice." Gen Pharmacol 29(2): 269-73.
  • Ng, T. B. (1998). "A review of research on the protein-bound polysaccharide (polysaccharopeptide, PSP) from the mushroom Coriolus versicolor (Basidiomycetes: Polyporaceae)." Gen Pharmacol 30(1): 1-4.
  • Chu, K. K., S. S. Ho, et al. (2002). "Coriolus versicolor: a medicinal mushroom with promising immunotherapeutic values." J Clin Pharmacol 42(9): 976-984.
  • Cui, J. and Y. Chisti (2003). "Polysaccharopeptides of Coriolus versicolor: physiological activity, uses, and production." Biotechnol Adv 21(2): 109-22.
  • Go, P. and C. H. Chung (1989). "Adjuvant PSK immunotherapy in patients with carcinoma of the nasopharynx." J Int Med Res 17(2): 141-9.
  • Kobayashi, H., K. Matsunaga, et al. (1995). "Antimetastatic effects of PSK (Krestin), a protein-bound polysaccharide obtained from basidiomycetes: an overview." Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 4(3): 275-81.
  • Ogoshi, K., H. Satou, et al. (1995). "Possible predictive markers of immunotherapy in esophageal cancer: retrospective analysis of a randomized study. The Cooperative Study Group for Esophageal Cancer in Japan." Cancer Invest 13(4): 363-9.
  • Kidd, P. M. (2000). "The use of mushroom glucans and proteoglycans in cancer treatment." Altern Med Rev 5(1): 4-27.
  • Fisher, M. and L. X. Yang (2002). "Anticancer effects and mechanisms of polysaccharide-K (PSK): implications of cancer immunotherapy." Anticancer Res 22(3): 1737-54.