Potential Active Compounds of and Their Anticancer Effects: A Comprehensive Review.

The incidence and mortality rates of cancer patients continue to rise. Although many physical and chemical therapies, such as targeted tumor treatments, are effective against cancer, they are often associated with varying degrees of side effects. Chinese herbal medicine, as an alternative therapy, can effectively alleviate clinical symptoms of cancer patients by preventing or stabilizing tumor growth. is a medicinal fungus that contains a variety of bioactive compounds in its fruiting body and mycelia. The importance of as a source of functional ingredients has been well recognized. As a result, the isolation and investigation of novel bioactive ingredients from have attracted considerable attention. Functional ingredients identified from this fungus, such as natural polysaccharides, triterpenoids, alkaloids, nucleosides, and amino acids, exhibit various beneficial biological activities, including antioxidant, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory effects. However, the medicinal properties of these bioactive compounds remain subject to controversy and ongoing challenges. This review outlines research on various active ingredients in and their anticancer effects, which may benefit immunocompromised individuals and biopharmaceutical developers, while providing fundamental knowledge on and its derived products.