TED Talk: Turkey Tail Helped My Mother through Cancer

Bastyr Seal

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Mycologist Paul Stamets has devoted his career to advancing our understanding of the healing potential of mushrooms. His work hit home when his mother was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer that had spread to her sternum and liver.

Her oncologist told her she was too old for radiation therapy. The doctor recommended a clinical trial of turkey tail mushrooms at the Bastyr Integrative Oncology Research Center — a study her son happened to be supplying through his mushroom cultivation business, Fungi Perfecti.

Stamets tells the story of his mother's dramatic recovery in a TED MED talk (beginning at the 7:50 mark).

"We are now rediscovering that which our ancestors long ago knew: That mushrooms are deep reservoirs for very powerful medicines," says the author, speaker and researcher.

Learn more about BIORC's turkey tail research, which has received FDA approval and a $5.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health.

And learn how you can participate in a similar trial for prostate cancer patients.