Mushrooms For Breast Cancer

A regular, daily portion of mushrooms could slash the risk of breast cancer by up to two-thirds, according to new research.

For women that combined drinking green tea along with eating fresh mushrooms daily, their risk was cut by almost 90 percent.

Australian researchers from the University of Perth compared the diets and lifestyles of more than 2000 women who attended a breast clinic in China. Working with detailed registers of their consumption of a variety of foods, they observed that, all other factors being equal, women who consumed an average of more than 10g of fresh mushrooms every day had 64% less risk of developing breast cancer than those who did not eat mushrooms. Those who ate 4g of dried mushrooms saw their risk diminish by 47%. When consumption of green tea was added (more than 1g of tea-leaves infused per day), the protective effect of the two factors combined reached 89%!

The evidence suggests that mushrooms act in a similar way to breast cancer drugs called aromatose inhibitors, which blocks the body’s production of the breast cancer-feeding hormone oestrogen.

Results from the laboratory have shown that mushrooms contain chemicals that inhibit aromatase and that the oral intake of mushroom extract suppresses breast tumor formation in mice indicating that many common mushroom can inhibit aromatase, and therefore may be able to lower estrogen levels in the human body, which might reduce breast cancer susceptibility.

• Extracts of large white mushrooms slashed estrogen production up to 50%.
• Small white, portobello and crimini mushrooms had similar actions, but were not as effective.

Which mushrooms are the most effective for breast cancer?

1. White button mushroom extract

White button mushroom extract are found to suppress breast cancer cell growth by preventing the synthesis of estrogen, the female hormone. Estrogen plays a major role in the development of breast cancer. In estrogen-dependent breast tumors, estrogen stimulates the formation of growth factors that are essential for breast cancer growth. In cells, a protein called aromatase produces estrogen, and in breast cancer patients, tumors contain an abnormally high level of aromatase, which generates a large amount of estrogen.

Phytochemicals, such as polysaccharides and especially beta-D-glucans found in the white button mushroom extract, bind to and inhibit the activity of aromatase, an enzyme responsible for the conversion of androgens to estrogens and which is often upregulated in breast cancer cells. The consequent decrease in estrogen production may result in the suppression of estrogen-dependent cellular proliferation.

2. Mesima extract

Extracts from a mushroom used for centuries in Eastern Asian medicine may stop breast cancer cells from growing and could become a new weapon in the fight against breast cancer.

A press release from Cancer Research UK reports that an extract of the mushroom Phellinus linteus has been found to halt the growth of breast cancer cells in vitro. Previous studies have also shown the species to be effective against other forms of cancer cells, but up until now nobody knew how it worked.

Phellinus linteus extract, also known as Mesima Mushroom Extract, has been traditionally used in Korea for ages as an anti-cancer product.

Mesima, popularly known as  ‘Black Hoof Fungus,’ is common on broadleaf trees in the southern United States and other sub-tropical and tropical parts of the world.  It often grows on oaks, mulberries and poplars.

Laboratory tests using human breast cancer cells show that Phellinus linteus has a marked anti-breast cancer effect, probably by blocking an enzyme called AKT. AKT is known to control signals that lead to cell growth.

Phellinus linteus — called song gen in Chinese medicine, sang-hwang in Korean and meshimakobu in Japanese — has previously been shown to have anti-tumor properties on skin, lung and prostate cancer cells.

Studies have shown that, Mesima extract has the highest rate of tumor inhibition activity. A study found that polysaccharides extracted from the mycelium of Mesima had a wider spectrum of activity and anti-tumor effects than polysaccharides from other species of mushrooms.  A study in 2000 at Seoul University, comparing different species of mushrooms, found a 96.7% breast-tumor inhibition rate. Mesima extract also helped the rapid recovery of the immune system after chemotherapy to near normal conditions.

Researchers believe that dietary supplements containing the extract could help ward off potential cancers, and the research could eventually lead to the development of new drugs.

Dr Daniel Sliva of the Methodist Research Institute in Indianapolis said the mushroom extract reduced uncontrolled growth of new cancer cells, suppressed their aggressive behavior and blocked new tumor-feeding blood vessels.

3. Maitake mushroom extract

Maitake is an edible mushroom from the species Grifola frondosa.

Maitake is thought to exert its effects through its ability to activate various effector cells, such as macrophages, natural killer cells, T cells, interleukin-1 and superoxide anions, all of which have anti-breast cancer activity.

In 2009, a phase I/II human trial showed Maitake could stimulate the immune system of breast cancer patients. Small experiments with human cancer patients revealed Maitake stimulated the patients NK cells. In vitro research has also shown Maitake can stimulate the activity of NK cells.

A highly recommended Maitake mushroom extract product is Maitake D-fraction.

Maitake D-fraction is an extract of this large mushroom native to the mountains of northeastern Japan. The maitake mushroom is eaten as a food, and maitake-D fraction is marketed as a dietary supplement in the United States and Japan. The substance in the maitake mushroom is thought to be active in humans and is called beta-glucan.

Maitake D-fraction is available in liquid extract, tablet, and capsule in health food stores, although the amount of beta glucan contained in each form may vary. The usual dosage of dried mushroom is between 3 and 7 grams daily. Maitake mushrooms are also available in grocery stores and can be eaten as food or made into tea.

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