(NAPSI)—Two clinical studies conducted at McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) showed that AHCC® mushroom extract can clear infections in women with recurrent human papillomavirus (HPV). Results of the most recent study were presented at the 14th International Conference of the Society for Integrative Oncology held in Chicago on November 12−14, 2017.
The objective of the two studies was to determine whether AHCC could eradicate an HPV infection in women at two different daily supplementation amounts (AHCC 1 gram or AHCC 3 grams) and to assess the necessary duration for AHCC therapy to be effective.
The first pilot study enrolled 10 women with persistent high-risk HPV infection taking 3 grams of AHCC once daily from five weeks up to six months. Half of the subjects who stayed on the protocol for four months showed a complete eradication of the HPV virus. “Eradication” means that they cleared the infection by the end of the supplementation period and remained infection-free when tested two months post-supplementation.
The second study, which looked at the efficacy of AHCC at the 1-gram dose, tracked 10 women with persistent, high-risk HPV infections for up to a period of eight months. The study observed that four of nine patients experienced eradication of the HPV infection by the end of the study period. One patient was withdrawn from the study due to an unanticipated pregnancy and noncompliance with study protocol.
On average, it took the responders in the AHCC 1-gram study longer to eradicate the HPV infection compared to duration of supplementation observed in the AHCC 3-gram study. These findings suggest that AHCC daily supplementation successfully modulates the host immune system to effectively eradicate persistent, high-risk HPV infections. Since the AHCC 3-gram supplementation achieved results in shorter duration, it is the recommended supplementation dose for future evaluation and use for this research.
The study was conducted by Dr. Judith Smith, the Director of Women’s Health Integrative Medicine Research Program in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences at McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas.
About AHCC
AHCC is a compound derived from cultured mycelia of Japanese lentinula edodes mushrooms. Standardized to acylated alpha-1,4-glucans, AHCC has been the subject of over 60 Medline-indexed and more than 20 human studies. Clinical research has shown that AHCC increases the number and activity of natural killer (NK) cells, dendritic cells and specific cytokines that help the body fight off infections and block growth of abnormal cells. The compound’s mode of action has been shown to be the stimulation of TLR-2 and TLR-4 receptors in the gut and its function as a prebiotic, nourishing the beneficial colonic and intestinal bacteria. AHCC has been widely used in Japan for over 30 years and in the U.S. for more than 15 years. It is offered as a dietary supplement and is also available in higher potency as a prescription medical food.
AHCC Research Association
The mission of the AHCC Research Association is to increase public awareness of AHCC in integrative medicine, educate consumers and doctors on AHCC’s preventative and therapeutic benefits, and support research studies on AHCC. For more information, please visit www.ahccresearch.org.
Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
The human papillomavirus (HPV) is a virus that has been detected in more than 99 percent of cervical cancer patients. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, several other cancers are related to HPV, including 95 percent of anal cancers, 60 percent of oropharyngeal cancers, 65 percent of vaginal cancers, 50 percent of vulvar cancers and 35 percent of penile cancers.
While most HPV infections are self-limiting and resolve without causing any symptoms, there is currently no effective treatment for those that persist and that the body’s innate immune system cannot clear. According to Dr. Judith Smith, “We test women for HPV, and if they have a persistent infection, there is nothing we can do for them except watch and wait. With AHCC, we may be able to eliminate that terrible limbo when a woman is in between HPV infection and a possible cancer diagnosis.”
“HPV is associated with many life-threatening cancers,” said Dr. Smith. “What we need is a safe, effective treatment for HPV before the cancer occurs.”
About Dr. Smith
Dr. Smith’s research focus is on the safe and effective use of nutritional and herbal supplements with pharmacologic modalities as they relate to women’s health. Her current research involves cancer eradication of high-risk HPV infections in women with persistent HPV infection.
For more information, please contact the AHCC Research Association at info@ahccresearch.org.