The Maitake mushroom, and in particular the Maitake D-fraction extract is believed by some to boost the immune system in ways that and can help to limit or reverse melanoma tumor growth (1). It is also said to enhance the effectiveness of chemotherapy (7) and other melanoma treatments to lower some side effects of anti-cancer drugs, such as hair loss, pain, and nausea. Maitake may be particularly effective in the treatment of melanoma because melanoma is one of the few cancers that has shown a response (i.e. shrinking tumors, or the stoppage of spreading) when certain elements of the immune system are boosted or better supported.
Maitake-D fraction is a part of the Maitake mushroom that was first isolated by Hiroaki Nanba, PhD, of Kobe Pharmaceutical University in Japan, and is believed to be the chemical in Maitake that is responsible for the anti-cancer and anti-melanoma effects.
