To evaluate the effect of ganoderma lucidium spore (GLS) to the immunological function of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after operation.

A total of 70 HCC patients who underwent hepatectomy in the Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery of the First People's Hospital of Foshan from November 2008 and December 2010, were studied prospectively. The informed consents of all patients were obtained and the ethical committee approval was received. The patients were randomly divided into the conventional liver protection therapy group (conventional therapy group) and GLS therapy group using computer random number table method. There were 35 cases in the conventional therapy group, of which 30 were males and 5 were females with the mean age of (51±10) years old. There were 35 cases in the GLS therapy group, of which 28 were males, 7 were females with the mean age of (50±9) years old. Another 35 healthy person who received physical examination were enrolled as the control group. Patients in the conventional therapy group began to take compound glycyrrhizin and GIK injection one day after hepatectomy. Patients in the GLS therapy group were given ganoderma lucidum spores orally upon the basic of conventional therapy one day after hepatectomy. Detections of cluster differentiation (CD)4⁺, CD8⁺ and natural killer (NK) cells in peripheral blood were undertook preoperatively (or when enrolled in the study), and 1, 7 and 28 days after the operation. Comparisons of percentage of CD4⁺, CD8⁺ and NK cells between 2 groups were performed using t test.

Percentage of CD4⁺ cells in HCC patients[ (34±7) %] reduced significantly, compared with the control group[ (43±7) %] (t=5.63, P<0.05) . Percentage of CD8⁺ cells in HCC patients [ (30±3) %] elevated significantly, compared with the control group [ (27±3) %] (t=4.83, P<0.05) . Percentage of NK cells in HCC patients [ (13±4) %] decreased significantly, compared with the control group [ (19±5) %] (t=6.18, P<0.05) . The percentages of CD4⁺、CD8⁺ and NK cells of patients before the operation were (34±7) %、(30±4) %、(14±4) % respectively in the conventional therapy group and (34±7) %、(31±3) %、(13±4) % in the GLS therapy group and there was no significantly difference between them (t=0.00, 1.18, 1.05; P>0.05). The percentages of CD4⁺、CD8⁺ and NK cells of patients in 2 groups decreased evidently one day after operation compared with the preoperative data (t= 4.01, 2.69, 2.75; P<0.01) . Compared with the conventional therapy group, the percentage of CD4⁺ in the GLS therapy group elevated significantly 7 and 28 days after operation (t=3.70, 2.39; P<0.05) , while the percentage of CD8⁺ decreased significantly (t=4.06, 2.79; P<0.05) , and the NK cells elevated significantly (t=2.79, 2.09; P<0.05) .

The cellular immunological function in patients with HCC is inhibited before and after the operation. Application of ganoderma lucidum spores early after the operation can improve the cellular immunological function and help to maintain the body immunological balance.