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AHCC Mushroom Extract Health Benefits
AHCC mushroom extract health benefits include immunity support and being a natural treatment for prostate cancer. Over the centuries, the mushrooms in this extract have been used for a variety of health problems. One thing that makes this supplement unique is how it is processed, which means AHCC mushroom extract health benefits are unlike those of traditional mushroom extracts.
One of the AHCC mushroom extract health benefits concerns prostate cancer, which is the second most common cancer among American men. For 2012, the National Cancer Institute estimated that 241,740 men would be diagnosed with prostate cancer and that 28,170 men would die of the disease. While there are both pharmaceutical and surgical methods available for treating early stage prostate cancer, men who have inoperable tumors or late-stage carcinomas may feel they lack options. Initial research indicates that for these individuals, AHCC mushroom extract health benefits are a natural approach that could hold promise, and it may help overall prostate health as well.
What is AHCC?
AHCC, short for active hexose correlated compound, is a hybridized extract of medicinal mushrooms — specifically the mycelia (or underground portion) of shiitake mushrooms. The subject of 30 PubMed-listed published studies confirming its immuno-modulating capabilities, AHCC is used in over 700 clinics worldwide. Unlike conventional cancer treatments, AHCC has a strong safety profile, with no side effects. This is not surprising, as mushroom mycelia have been consumed as food since antiquity and have a long tradition of medicinal use in Japan.
AHCC is unique in that while most mushrooms contain primarily betaglucans, AHCC is very rich in alpha-glucans. The alpha-glucans are a different type of polysaccharide with very potent abilities to affect the immune system. Due to a patented manufacturing process, AHCC has a low molecular weight (under 5,000 daltons, as compared to 200,000 daltons for most medical mushrooms). The small size of AHCC molecules translates to increased absorption and increased efficacy compared to traditional shiitake, maitake, and reishi extracts.
AHCC and Immune Function
The job of the immune system is to protect the body from foreign organisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and cancer cells. Therefore, cancer is ultimately a failure of the immune system. AHCC mushroom extract health benefits include an ability to enhance immune function by increasing numbers of several key types of cells and molecules.
- Cytokines are messengers that allow the immune system to organize a response to an infection or another threat to the body, such as cancer. A study in healthy elderly people demonstrated that AHCC increases the production of cytokines, such as INF-γ and TNF-α.
- Natural killer (NK) cells are white blood cells that serve as the body’s first line of defense. They recognize and destroy infected or cancerous cells by injecting material into them that causes them to swell and explode. Human studies have shown that one of AHCC mushroom extract health benefits is an ability to increase the activity of NK cells by 200-300 percent. Specifically, AHCC makes NK cells more effective by increasing their ability to bind to tumor cells.
- Macrophages engulf and destroy bacteria. AHCC has been demonstrated to increase populations of these cells by up to 100 percent.
- Dendritic cells are white blood cells that present foreign substances to B and T cells, which then destroy them. AHCC significantly increases numbers of dendritic cells.
AHCC and Cancer Treatment
AHCC mushroom extract health benefits are being explored worldwide to treat many kinds of cancer. Although there have not been numerous large-scale randomized controlled trials yet conducted, many human studies have pointed to its efficacy in treating cancer.
- A trial of liver cancer patients who had undergone partial removal of the liver found that among patients who received AHCC, only 39 out of 113 suffered a recurrence of their cancer (34.5%), while 72 out 109 patients in the control group did (66%) — nearly twice as many. Moreover, survival rates in the AHCC group were significantly better than those in the control group.
- AHCC also helps patients with gastric and colon cancers. When used in combination with chemotherapy, AHCC mushroom extract health benefits included improvement in the five-year survival rates of early-stage gastric cancer patients and late-stage colon cancer patients.
- Another clinical study of late-stage liver cancer patients found that subjects who took AHCC survived for an average of 3.5 months, while those in the control group survived just 1.5 months. In fact, after 3.5 months, the entire control group had passed away, while 61.5 percent of the AHCC group was still alive.
AHCC and Quality of Life
AHCC has no side effects and can even help relieve the side effects of cancer treatments. Using both physical and mental criteria after three months of AHCC treatment, researchers found that the quality of life of liver cancer patients was significantly improved. Another study found AHCC mushroom extract health benefits included easing the debilitating side effects of chemotherapy for patients with late-stage head and neck cancers. The subjects had better appetites, felt stronger, and reported less nausea and vomiting when they took AHCC. Their white blood cell counts also improved and they suffered less constipation.
AHCC and Prostate Cancer
Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is a protein secreted by the prostate that is found in the blood of men. However, elevated or rising PSA levels can signal prostate cancer.
Some clinical evidence indicates that one of the AHCC mushroom extract health benefits may be an ability to lower PSA levels while other research has shown that AHCC stabilizes PSA but without causing a reduction. Even in the case of the latter findings, the ability to stabilize PSA levels with a very safe natural compound provides a significant benefit for the patient.
A study of 11 advanced cancer patients (three with prostate cancer) found that the PSA levels of the prostate cancer patients began dropping significantly after 1-2 months of treatment and had fallen to normal levels by 4 months.
Published case reports have come to similar conclusions about AHCC mushroom extract health benefits. One such report described the case of a prostate cancer patient whose cancer had spread to his bones and who had not responded to androgen deprivation therapy. After treatment with the supplement, AHCC mushroom extract health benefits included a drop in his PSA levels from 69.3 ng/ml to just 1.5 ng/ml. His bone cancer became stable and his pain and ability to walk were improved.
One human clinical trial found that 39 of 62 prostate cancer patients treated with AHCC for six months either had stable or falling PSA levels. Moreover, when the data was further analyzed, it was found that older patients and those whose cancer had metastasized had the most stable PSA levels, although the trend was not statistically significant.
Another study of 74 patients showed that while AHCC did not lower PSA levels, the patients’ PSA levels remained stable. This was an interesting finding, considering that PSA levels would be expected to rise in the normal progression of the disease. Therefore, AHCC may be a good treatment option for late-stage prostate cancer patients.
While large-scale, randomized double-blind studies are needed to reach decisive conclusions, the evidence thus far indicates that AHCC mushroom extract health benefits are available. AHCC is a safe, natural compound with no known side effects that holds promise in the treatment of prostate cancer by helping reduce or stabilize PSA levels while improving patients’ quality of life.
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Prostate Cancer Statistics. Sept. 29, 2011.
http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/prostate/statistics
Pescatore, Fred and Ritz, Barry. AHCC: A powerful aid in fighting viruses and infections. Total Health. 2008; 30(2):30-31. AHCC mushroom extract health benefits
Yin Z, et al. Determining the frequency of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells producing INF-γ and TNF-α in healthy elderly people using flow cytometry before and after active hexose correlated compound (AHCC) intake. Unpublished study.
Ghoneum M. NK-Immunomodulation by active hemicelluloses compound: (AHCC) in 17 cancer patients. Adjuvant Nutrition in Cancer Treatment Symposium, Tulsa OK. Nov. 6-7, 1992.
Ghoneum M, et al. Immunomodulatory and anticancer effects of active hemicelluloses compound (AHCC). International Journal of Immunotherapy. 1995; XI(1):23-8.
Kenner, Dan. AHCC: Active Hexose Correlated Compound. Pleasant Grove, Utah: Woodland Publishing, 2001. Explains AHCC mushroom extract health benefits
Terakawa N, et al. Immunological effect of active hexose correlated compound (AHCC) in healthy volunteers: A double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Nutrition and Cancer. 2008; 60(5):643-51.
Matsui K, et al. Improved prognosis of postoperative hepatocellular carcinoma patients when treated with functional foods: a prospective cohort study. Journal of Hepatology. 2002; 37:78-86. AHCC mushroom extract health benefits
Kawaguchi Y. Improved survival of patients with gastric cancer or colon cancer when treated with active hexose correlated compound (AHCC): Effect of AHCC on digestive system cancer. Natural Medicine Journal. 2009; 1(1):1-6.
Cowawintaweewat S, et al. Prognostic improvement of patients with advanced liver cancer after active hexose correlated compound (AHCC) treatment. Asian Pacific Journal of Allergy and Immunology. 2006; 24(1):33-45.
Cowawintaweewat S, et al. Prognostic improvement of patients with advanced liver cancer after active hexose correlated compound (AHCC) treatment. Asian Pacific Journal of Allergy and Immunology. 2006; 24(1):33-45.
Parida DK, Wakame K, Nomura T. The use of active hexose correlated compound in the treatment of head and neck cancer patients. North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health & Medical Sciences, India. Unpublished study.
Ghoneum M, et al. Immunomodulatory and anticancer effects of Active Hemicellolose Compound (AHCC). International Journal of Immunotherapy. 1995; XI(1):23-8.
Turner J, Chaudhary U. Dramatic prostate-specific antigen response with activated hemicellulose compount in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Anti-Cancer Drugs. 2009; 20(3):215-6.
deVere White R, et al. Effects of a mushroom mycelium extract in the treatment of prostate cancer. Urology. 2002; 60:640-4.
Sumiyoshi Y, et al. Dietary administration of mushroom mycelium extracts in patients with early stage prostate cancers managed expectantly: a phase II study. Japanese Journal of Clinical Oncology. 2010; 40(10):967-72.
