Heather Bedard, C.H.E.
There are many different kinds of mushrooms touted as being medicinally beneficial. These include Reishi, Turkey Tail, and Agaricus. Medicinal mushrooms are touted as helpful for cancer patients due to their content of beta glucans. While beta glucans don’t directly kill cancer cells, studies show that they can stimulate the immune system to do so.
It seems that primarily mushrooms are beneficial for cancer prevention or to inhibit tumor growth, and not so much as a treatment to cure cancer. Some mushrooms can lower inflammation which is helpful to decrease the inflammatory load in cancer patients.
A component in the Turkey Tail mushroom called polysaccharide K (PSK) helps to support the immune system.[1] One study in Japan showed that patients with gastric cancer that took PSK along with chemotherapy, lived longer than those who did not.[2] It’s important to keep in mind that the majority of studies on these mushrooms have not been done on humans and may not reflect real-life experience.
For people wanting to support their body’s immune system even while taking chemotherapy and other drugs, mushrooms may be a worthwhile attempt with little to no side effects.[3] All in all it seems that these mushrooms may be helpful for longevity when used as an adjuvant and do not necessarily treat cancer on their own.
---------------------
[1] Fisher M, Yang LX. Anticancer effects and mechanisms of polysaccharide-K (PSK): implications of cancer immunotherapy. Anticancer Res. 2002;22(3):1737-1754.
[2] Kaibara, N., Soejima, K., Nakamura, T. et al. Postoperative long term chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer. The Japanese Journal of Surgery 6, 54–59 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02468887
[3] Fritz H, Kennedy DA, Ishii M, et al. Polysaccharide K and Coriolus versicolor extracts for lung cancer: a systematic review. Integr Cancer Ther. 2015;14(3):201-211. doi:10.1177/1534735415572883