A Preliminary Randomised Controlled Study of Short-Term Antrodia cinnamomea Treatment Combined with Chemotherapy for Patients with Advanced Cancer

Authors: Ming-Yen Tsai, Yu-Chiang Hung, Yen-Hao Chen, Yung-Hsiang Chen, Yu-Chuen Huang, Chao-Wei Kao, Yu-Li Su, Hsien-Hsueh Elley Chiu, and Kun-Ming Rau

Journal: BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine  

Study Design: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial  

Participants: 37 patients with advanced and/or metastatic adenocarcinoma  

Trial Length: 30 days  

Intervention:

• Treatment group: 20 ml of Antrodia cinnamomea (AC) orally twice daily  
• Placebo group: 20 ml of placebo orally twice daily  
• Both groups received routine chemotherapy regimens  

Outcome Measures:

• 6-month overall survival (OS)  
• Disease control rate (DCR)  
• Quality of life (QOL)  
• Adverse events (AE)  
• Biochemical features  

Summary:

The study investigated the safety and efficacy of short-term AC treatment combined with chemotherapy in patients with advanced cancer. The results showed no significant improvement in overall survival or disease control rate in the AC group compared to the placebo group. However, the AC group showed significant improvements in sleep quality. The AC group also experienced a significant decrease in platelet counts. The study concluded that AC combined with chemotherapy did not improve the outcome of advanced cancer patients.