mushrooms

Is it safe to use reiski mushroom with chemo treatments. I understand it is very benefical with reducing tumors, increasing immune, and other features.tks

Comments

  • Mikenh
    Mikenh Member Posts: 777
    I have no idea on this stuff

    I have no idea on this stuff - have you asked your oncologist?

  • NewHere
    NewHere Member Posts: 1,427 Member
    On Mushrooms

    What MikeNH said.  I am taking them myself since I have inoperable cancer and trying other things.  

    MSK has listings for many alternative items, such as mushrooms.

    This link on Reshi.  

    https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs/reishi-mushroom

     "

    • To stimulate the immune system
      Laboratory studies suggest that reishi mushroom may stimulate some cells of the immune system. A small clinical trial showed that reishi can enhance immune response in advanced-stage cancer patients. More studies are needed.

    "

    "Beta glucans, polysaccharides present in reishi, have demonstrated antitumor and immunostimulating activities (18) (40). Its triterpene compounds may inhibit tumor invasion by reducing matrix metalloproteinase expression (16), and tumor metastases by limiting attachment to endothelial cells (17). Recent findings indicate that reishi induces natural killer (NK) cell cytotoxicity against various cancer cell lines via activation of the natural cytotoxic receptors (NKG2D/NCR) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-signaling pathways, which result in exocytosis of perforin and granulysin (31). Reishi polysaccharides were also shown to increase expression of the major histocompatibility (MHC) class I and costimulatory molecules on melanoma cells, resulting in enhanced antitumor cytotoxicity (32). In human ovarian cancer cells, reishi inhibits proliferation by suppressing vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression and upregulating connexin 43 expression (39).

    In other studies reishi increased plasma antioxidant capacity (6) (7) and enhanced immune response in advance-stage cancer patients (8). Its extracts also inhibited 5-alpha reductase, an important enzyme that converts testosterone to dihydrotestosterone and is upregulated in benign prostatic hyperplasia (9)."

  • Annabelle41415
    Annabelle41415 Member Posts: 6,742 Member
    edited February 2018 #4
    Doctor

    Although I've heard many benefits from those, it's sometimes hard to get the doctors to prescribe them so you can get them legally.  I'm hoping that you are able to get some assistance for it to see if it helps.

    Kim

  • NewHere
    NewHere Member Posts: 1,427 Member

    Doctor

    Although I've heard many benefits from those, it's sometimes hard to get the doctors to prescribe them so you can get them legally.  I'm hoping that you are able to get some assistance for it to see if it helps.

    Kim

    AB Many Places Have These, Not Prescription/Legal Issue

    I am seeing a herbalist/accupuncturist and they give me various herbs, including resihi mushrooms, that I boil and make a liquid that I take 4 tablespoons, three times a day.  

    https://mushroomscience.com (someone here recommended that site to me)  sells various mushrooms and so do the other places.  Not really a question of legality.  It is more (a) confirming with your doctors that it is okay to use them while on treatment (my oncologist, at Memorial Sloan Kettering, is totally fine with me using them now, not sure if that will change if I go back on chemo and (b) sourcing and preperation of the herbs/mushrooms.  

    On point (b), that is one of the things that sometimes throws a roadblock in mushrooms and also research on mushrooms (or so some say).  There are concerns about where the herbs come from, how they were grown and prepared, etc.  Some say unless mushroom (whatever name here) is grown in the proper region under the correct conditions, then the efficacy is reduced or gone.  Sort of a variation of unless the grapes are grown in a certain place, you cannot call it champagne Laughing   The same applies to preparation.

    Hopefully more research is done on these things and some of these variables (which really happen in any research) can be controlled enough so that more definative conclusions and, hopefully, good results, can be found.

    I will have a better sense of how I am doing with this in the next two months when scans done.  Right now I still feel fine.

    And when I do tell people that I am taking mushrooms, I always follow up with "Not the Grateful Dead kind." Cool

  • Noneya
    Noneya Member Posts: 35
    I use them

     Due to the fact that it took awhile for the insurance to preapprove the chemo course for me my oncologist and I discussed other things I could do for the first month. Lucky she's from India and we used several herbals including reishi and chaga mushrooms.  I still take the tea daily instead of my first cup of coffee each day and we both believe it does no harm and might if nothing else it let's me center myself each morning. I keep telling her that if I skip it those are the nassty stomach days. She now makes me mark down days I miss and have the upset gut to track. So talk to the Dr. and you can get it as a powder online.

  • Ruthmomto4
    Ruthmomto4 Member Posts: 708 Member
    My husband takes two supplements

    both contain mushrooms, the homeopathic dr suggested them to a friend. He sailed through strong chemo so we got the ok to take them. My husband has basically been coasting through as well, a bit more tired but he is in treatment 10. 

  • tanstaafl
    tanstaafl Member Posts: 1,313 Member
    'shroom extracts

    My wife uses mushroom extracts and beta glucans with our oral 5FU derivative "alone" (no oxi-, no iri-), with good results.  A Coriolus-PSK clone is our primary mushroom extract choice,  up to 3 grams a day. A reishi/maitake/shiitake extract is on our Life Extension based list too.  

  • peterz54
    peterz54 Member Posts: 341
    edited February 2018 #9
    Support from the literature

    There's support in the medical literature for the use of mushrooms

    https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=mushroom+cancer&hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C10&as_ylo=2010&as_yhi= 

    Peter

  • ThomasH
    ThomasH Member Posts: 106 Member
    I take turkey tail and lion's mane mushrooms

    I do the turkey tail for its anti-cancer properties, and I take the lion's mane to help with my neuropathy. There is a lot of good info out there, and here is one link I found in my travels in case anyone is interested in having a read.

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3339609/

    Take care all,

    Thomas

  • Noneya
    Noneya Member Posts: 35
    edited February 2018 #11
    Chaga vs Turkey Tail

    I'm using Chaga now but was considering Turkeytail as it take upwards of 10+ years for chaga to grow. Turkey tail can be cultivated at home in as little as 6 months. Do you grow your own,wild harvest or premade.

  • ThomasH
    ThomasH Member Posts: 106 Member
    Noneya said:

    Chaga vs Turkey Tail

    I'm using Chaga now but was considering Turkeytail as it take upwards of 10+ years for chaga to grow. Turkey tail can be cultivated at home in as little as 6 months. Do you grow your own,wild harvest or premade.

    I do premade

    I don't have the skills for growing my own yet, but that would be pretty cool. I've grown some regular edible ones in a kit, but I've never tried the turkeytail ones. I would need to do more research on that one, and the capsules of dried mushroom are so convenient.

    Some things I'm just lazy on

    Thomas

  • DanNH
    DanNH Member Posts: 184 Member
    Ditto above. Mushrooms come

    Ditto above. Mushrooms come in solids and powders but you can get tinctures as well. You can add the recommended number of drops to liquid. It is an easy and quick way to get your mushroom supplements on board. Try a holistic practioner or a good health food store with knowledgable personnel to make sure that they are quality sourced. Ours are all checked with our chiropractor using muscle testing to ensure that they are helping. I hope that helps. We are currently doing chemo.

    Dan

  • denhamok
    denhamok Member Posts: 9 Member
    edited November 2021 #14
    Dietary supplements such as

    Dietary supplements such as lion's mane mushroom have many health benefits and are widely used by cancer patients and people with a genetic risk of cancer.