Supplement · graded by use, two uses
Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum)
Immune cell measures as an adjunct A treatment tested on top of standard prescribed therapy rather than in place of it. to cancer treatment.
Grade C: human trials exist, but they are small, mixed or not yet repeated. This is not a finding that it does not work. How to read a grade →
Reishi is a mushroom long used in Chinese medicine. In five small studies of people with cancer, reishi taken with regular cancer treatment raised some immune cell counts. A careful review judged the evidence weak, and the studies used different products. In people with diabetes or high blood pressure, it did not improve blood sugar, blood fats or blood pressure.
The C belongs to one of the two uses graded on this record. The other one carries its own letter.
As studied, and the trials
Jin et al. (Cochrane, 2016; PMID PubMed ID: the permanent number the US National Library of Medicine gives a published paper. Each one links to that paper's record on PubMed. 27045603): 5 small randomized trials; CD3, CD4 and CD8 percentages rose with G. lucidum alongside conventional treatment, quality of life signals were inconsistent, tumor response had a confidence interval The range the true effect probably falls in. A wide interval means the estimate is uncertain. crossing 1, and no trial measured survival. Methodological quality rated generally unsatisfying. Small, low-quality positive trials on immune cell percentages, a surrogate: C.
As studied, and the trials
Tested without benefit. The Cochrane review of cardiovascular risk factors (Klupp et al., 2015; PMID 25686270) and the largest placebo-controlled trial (Klupp et al., 2016; PMID 27511742) found no change in HbA1c A blood test that reflects average blood sugar over the previous two to three months., glucose, lipids or blood pressure. D on Route 2 Human randomized trials have been run and did not show benefit on the stated outcome. One of the two routes to the lowest letter on EBL's scale..
Read the grade that matches your goal. How EBL grades by use →
- Dose studied
- 1.5–9 g/day (common range, not from cited trial)
- Form graded
- Ganoderma lucidum extract
- Evidence behind the C
- PMID 27045603 →
A letter describes the human evidence, not the product, the manufacturer, or the ingredient's worth.
See the full evidence record →Immune cell measures as an adjunct to cancer treatment, five small trials of varied preparations pooled by Cochrane at low certainty.
As studied: dose, form, population and duration for every use
A grade describes the intervention that was tested. Where the product on the shelf differs from it, this says so.
How this letter has changed · latest: October 2026 · Changed
The record cited one Cochrane review (Jin et al., 2016; PMID 27045603) without saying the trials used different preparations, that no trial measured survival, or that the review rated quality unsatisfying; the use row and form note now say so, and the tumor response figure with its interval crossing 1 is not leaned on. The cardiometabolic use a reader meets in marketing was untouched: the Cochrane review of cardiovascular risk factors (Klupp et al., 2015; PMID 25686270) and the largest placebo-controlled trial (Klupp et al., Sci Rep, 2016; PMID 27511742) are null, D Route 2 on their own row. A case report of acute liver injury (Guedikian et al., 2023; PMID 37885515) is added to the cautions as a signal. The evidence type is corrected to pooled randomized trials. The headline stays C. Applied the written grade definition under the editor's standing instruction of October 2026 (Arnold Sandlow, D.C.).PMID 25686270 PMID 27045603 PMID 27511742 PMID 37885515
Every change to a letter on this site is dated and published. The full evidence log →
Commercial disclosure
EBL earns no commission on any supplement it grades. A purchase made through the dispensary link below pays EBL nothing, the practitioner discount goes to you in full. The dispensary is Fullscript, a practitioner dispensary, and many of the professional-grade brands in it are sold mainly through practitioners rather than in health food stores. Grades are assigned by published rubric before any commercial relationship exists and are never influenced by one. Full disclosure.
No single studied dose. The cancer-adjunct trials used different G. lucidum preparations the review does not standardize; the cardiometabolic trials used 1.4 to 3 g/day of extract for 12 to 16 weeks and found nothing.
The trials pooled by Cochrane used different G. lucidum preparations (polysaccharide extracts, spore powders, capsules), so the C attaches to the preparations as studied, not to any product a reader can buy.
The cited review does not report when doses were taken (PMID 27045603).
Checked against the published summary; the full paper could not be read. What the cited trials did, not a schedule. Every supplement, by trial timing →
Raised bleeding risk, with separation from surgery the usual clinical margin. Pregnancy. Liver: case reports describe acute liver injury after reishi powder, in one case with alcohol (Guedikian et al., 2023; PMID 37885515); case reports carry no grade and are stated as a signal.
Anticoagulants and antiplatelets: an inhibitor of platelet aggregation was isolated from Ganoderma lucidum, and that mechanism, not a clinical trial, is what the caution rests on. Immunosuppressants: reishi's beta-glucans are immune-active, which runs against the purpose of the drug. Blood pressure and diabetes medication: additive lowering.
Reishi contains a platelet aggregation inhibitor. An inhibitor of platelet aggregation was isolated from Ganoderma lucidum. The bleeding caution rests on that chemistry, not on a clinical trial. Shimizu et al. (Chemical and Pharmaceutical Bulletin, 1985; PMID 4085058): isolation of an inhibitor of platelet aggregation from Ganoderma lucidum.
For the graded use, the immune cell percentages the trials measured (CD3, CD4, CD8 or natural killer activity) at baseline and 12 weeks, if measured at all, within cancer care. Liver enzymes at baseline and 3 months, given the case reports. Fatigue and quality of life are not graded on this record.
Primary evidenceFour papers, each linked to its PubMed record.
Jin et al. (Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews A review that searches for every study on a question using a method set in advance, then assesses them together., 2016; PMID 27045603): 5 randomized trials of G. lucidum alongside conventional cancer treatment; CD3, CD4 and CD8 percentages rose, tumor response was reported as a relative risk The risk in one group expressed as a share of the risk in another. It can make a small absolute difference look large. of 1.50 with a confidence interval of 0.90 to 2.51, which the record does not lean on; the review rated the trials' methodological quality generally unsatisfying, and no trial recorded survival. Klupp et al. (Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2015; PMID 25686270): 5 trials, 398 participants with type 2 diabetes, 1.4 to 3 g/day for 12 to 16 weeks; no significant change in HbA1c, total or LDL Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, the cholesterol fraction most closely tied to plaque in the arteries. cholesterol or body mass index. Klupp et al. (Sci Rep, 2016; PMID 27511742): double-blind placebo-controlled trial, 84 adults with type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome, 3 g/day for 16 weeks, with or without Cordyceps sinensis; no effect on HbA1c, fasting glucose or any secondary outcome. Guedikian et al. (Cureus, 2023; PMID 37885515): a case report of acute liver injury after reishi powder with alcohol, resolving in two weeks; case reports carry no grade and are cited as a safety signal. Grade C: small, low-quality positive trials on surrogate immune markers; cardiometabolic use tested without benefit.
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These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. The grade on this page describes the strength of published human trial evidence in the populations studied. It is not a recommendation for any individual and is not medical advice. Starting, stopping or changing any supplement or medication is a decision for your physician.
Who responds: this record's trial reading reports no subgroup that identifies who responds.
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How EBL searched for the trials (1 search)
The search that was run, what it returned, and what was left out and why, so the absence of evidence can be checked as well as its presence.
(Ganoderma lucidum[tiab] OR reishi[tiab] OR lingzhi[tiab]) AND humans[mesh] AND (randomized controlled trial[pt] OR meta-analysis[pt])Grades move when new trials publish. A free monthly email lists every grade EBL moved, with the reason and the trial behind it: the sign-up is on the Evidence Log →