Mushrooms, both edible and medicinal have received considerable attention against cancer due to their polysaccharides, polysaccharides-protein complexes and low molecular weight secondary metabolites content. Every year, millions of people die because of this disease. Existing cancer therapies are poised with questions of efficacy, toxicity and adverse effects, hence justifying the search for finding new, alternative and efficient means to fend off the disease. Mushrooms and their derived active molecules can prevent oncogenesis and tumour metastasis via directly inhibiting tumour cells growth or indirectly improving immunity functions and by acting as chemotherapy adjuvants. While the mechanisms of such effects are not fully known, the roles of the bioactive compounds on cell signaling pathways involved in the promotion and progression of the disease appear to be key, particularly in view of their role(s) in multiple cellular processes, including cell survival, proliferation, and differentiation. This review discusses the aberrant cell signaling pathways involved in inhibition of tumour cell growth as target for mushrooms and their bioactive compounds as well as the associated challenges for the molecules therein to be successfully considered as preventive/therapeutic agents against cancer.

食用和药用蘑菇因其多糖、多糖-蛋白质复合物和低分子量次生代谢物含量而受到相当多的关注。每年，数百万人死于这种疾病。现有的癌症疗法面临着疗效、毒性和副作用的问题，因此有理由寻找新的、替代的和有效的方法来抵御这种疾病。蘑菇及其衍生的活性分子可以通过直接抑制肿瘤细胞生长或间接提高免疫功能以及作为化疗佐剂来预防肿瘤发生和肿瘤转移。虽然这种影响的机制尚不完全清楚，生物活性化合物在参与疾病促进和进展的细胞信号通路中的作用似乎是关键，特别是考虑到它们在多个细胞过程中的作用，包括细胞存活、增殖和分化。本综述讨论了作为蘑菇及其生物活性化合物靶标的抑制肿瘤细胞生长的异常细胞信号通路，以及其中的分子被成功视为癌症预防/治疗剂的相关挑战。