P. linteus is a medicinal mushroom that has been practiced in oriental countries for centuries to prevent ailments as diverse as gastroenteric dysfunction, diarrhea, haemorrhage and cancers. In an effort to translate the Asian traditional medicines into western-accepted therapies, scientists have demonstrated that the extracts from fruit-bodies or mycelium of P. linteus not only stimulate the hormonal and cell-mediated immune function and quench the inflammatory reactions caused by a variety of stimuli, but also suppress the tumor growth and metastasis. Mounting evidence from different research groups has shown that P. linteus induces apoptosis in a host of murine and human carcinomas without causing any measurable toxic effects to their normal counterparts