A mushroom used in Asian cooking can stop the growth of prostate cancer in mice, researchers in Australia have found.
A compound called polysaccharopeptide (PSP), extracted from the turkey tail mushroom, was found to target prostate cancer stemcells and suppress tumour formation in trials on mice.
Scientist Patrick Ling said conventional treatments, like chemotherapy and radiotherapy, targeted some cancer cells, but not stemcells.
Stemcells initiate cancer and cause the disease to spread, said Dr Ling, from the Australian Prostate Cancer Research Centre in Queensland.
'People believe that the cancer stemcell is one of the major reasons why the cancer treatment is not working,' he told AAP.
'If you can come up with some treatments that can target those cancer stemcells you may actually be able to improve treatments.
'We find that this mushroom extract is very effective in targeting those cancer stemcells.'
In a trial involving almost 20 mice carrying a gene to develop prostate cancer, scientists fed PSP to about half for 20 weeks while the others went without.
All of those eating the extract didn't develop the cancer, the others did.
'Our findings support that PSP may be a potent preventative agent against prostate cancer, through targeting of the prostate cancer stem cell population,' Dr Ling said.
The turkey tail mushroom is used in Asian soups to boost health, but Dr Ling said there's no research to suggest that simply eating the vegetable can have the same effect as his research has found.
More tests will be done later this year.
A compound called polysaccharopeptide (PSP), extracted from the turkey tail mushroom, was found to target prostate cancer stemcells and suppress tumour formation in trials on mice.
Scientist Patrick Ling said conventional treatments, like chemotherapy and radiotherapy, targeted some cancer cells, but not stemcells.
Stemcells initiate cancer and cause the disease to spread, said Dr Ling, from the Australian Prostate Cancer Research Centre in Queensland.
'People believe that the cancer stemcell is one of the major reasons why the cancer treatment is not working,' he told AAP.
'If you can come up with some treatments that can target those cancer stemcells you may actually be able to improve treatments.
'We find that this mushroom extract is very effective in targeting those cancer stemcells.'
In a trial involving almost 20 mice carrying a gene to develop prostate cancer, scientists fed PSP to about half for 20 weeks while the others went without.
All of those eating the extract didn't develop the cancer, the others did.
'Our findings support that PSP may be a potent preventative agent against prostate cancer, through targeting of the prostate cancer stem cell population,' Dr Ling said.
The turkey tail mushroom is used in Asian soups to boost health, but Dr Ling said there's no research to suggest that simply eating the vegetable can have the same effect as his research has found.
More tests will be done later this year.
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