Israeli scientists claim that a wild mushroom, used in traditional Chinese medicine for a century, could treat prostate cancer, the University of Haifa said.
Researchers at the university in northern Israel said they found molecules in the Ganoderma lucidum mushroom, commonly known as the reishi in Japanese or lingzhi in Chinese (see TCM NEWS glossary), which help suppress some mechanisms involved in the progression of prostate cancer.
Lingzhi has been proven in the lab to have medicinal value. Lingzhi has been shown to have an effect on breast cancer. Together with a special TCM formula, lingzhi can help sooth arthritis pain. Yet, it also seems to be able to slow the progress of Alzheimer's disease.
The compounds identified in lingzhi were found help suppress some of the mechanisms involved in the progression of prostate cancer. They disrupt the activity of androgen receptors and impede the proliferation of cancerous cells.
According to the researcher, prostate cancer - one of the most common cancers among men in the West - is controlled by the androgen receptor, especially in the initial stages of development of the disease. Therefore, all medications currently used to treat prostate cancer work to reduce the production of androgens or to interfere with their function via the androgen receptor.
"The results of this research are particularly interesting from a commercial aspect. Potential possibilities exist to establish research and development of bioactive metabolites from Ganoderma lucidum that could yield an anti-prostate cancer drug,"Zaidman said.
