Auxiliary Cancer Treatment Using Ganoderma in a Clinical Study

In 1995, Thaithatgom, from Thailand, used ganoderma fruiting body extracts as an auxiliary treatment for 80 cancer patient. It was found to be effective in extending the lifespan of up to 50% of patients, allowing them to live for an extra three to six months. Also, the side effects arising from chemotherapy and radiotherapy were decreased or alleviated. The patients showed pain-relief, good appetite and a better quality of life. In 2003, Gao and co-workers from New Zealand conducted an experiment, giving purified G. lucidum polysaccharide (5.4g/day; 1.8g/dose) orally to 47 patients with terminal colorectal cancer (stage III and stage IV). Forty-one patients remained alive after 12 weeks (3 months) of administration. Blood analysis of the surviving patients showed that the natural killer cell activity of 28 patients (68.3%) had significantly increased. In addition, chemotherapy and radiotherapy side-effects such as extreme fatigue, weight los, vomiting, cold sweat, and diarrhea were reduced and so improving the quality of life of the patient. The conclusion drawn from this study is that ganoderma modulates the patients’ overall immune system, enhances their body’s anti-cancer ability, and raises their tolerance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. For this reason, ganoderma is considered to be a potential auxiliary treatment to chemotherapy and radiotherapy, used to enhance the immunity of patients.

The same G.Lucidum polysaccharides used in the experiment were also tested on 34 terminal cancer patients of another group consisting of 7 lung cancer, 6 colorectal cancer, 5 breast cancer, 5 hepatoma, 4 prostate cancer, 2 bladder carcinoma, 2 brain cancer, and 3 anonymous cancer patients. Using the same experimental method, 30 patients remained alive, and the same positive results were also obtained from their blood analyses. That is, natural killer (NK) cell activity was enhanced while side-effects resulting from chemotherapy and radiotherapy were reduced.

Since the polysaccharides used in this clinical trial were purified, a daily dose of 5.4 grams, when converted to “ganoderma extracts”, is equivalent to a relative high dose. Based on this study result, it is recommended to cancer patients that when using ganoderma extracts as an auxiliary treatment, a low dosage will not suffice to fight against persistent cancer cells and intolerable side effects, moreover, administration should not be “short-term” only for a basic course of treatment, at least months is needed.

In addition, the accumulated statistical data also serve as firm support for ganoderma’s effect as an auxiliary treatment to cancer therapy, for each of the data collected is a real case of ganoderma testimony. According to a professional periodical ‘Health Ganoderma’ , published in Taiwan, a scientific survey was conducted in 2007 on patients who had been using ganoderma extracts as anti-cancer auxiliary treatment for the past 20 years. It was discovered that of over 700 cancer patients interviewed, 70% thought that ganoderma extracts could reduce side-effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy and enhance immunity. In particular, this report also explicated detailed personal experiences from 7 ganoderma consumers. It is impossible to avoid praising the extraordinary impact of the effect of ganoderma on cancer prevention when reviewing these true-life stories.

Tumor is indeed a worrying disease with patients experiencing unbearable side effects when undergoing conventional treatment. The research achievements is respect to ganoderma’s anti-cancer application so far can be said to be quite fruitful; nevertheless, new and surprising discoveries continue to take place with each passing day. Ganoderma’s feasibility in assisting cancer treatment is without question. By briefly gathering reports of ganoderma’s overall performance in cancer therapy at hand, it can be observed that, regardless of the stages of treatment, the most important approach of ganoderma is to inhibit cancer cell proliferation or metastasis, to induce apoptosis, and to kill cancer cells directly. Then, by anti-oxidation and stimulating mechanisms such as bone marrow hematopoietic system and liver protection, it not only increases patients’ survival rate, but it also effectively reduces the side-effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. It maintains the patients’ quality oflife throughout the period of treatment. Ganoderma certainly plays an indispensable role in the anti-cancer process.