Changes in Taste and Smell During Cancer Treatment

Cancer treatment doesn’t just target the disease, but it can also alter the senses we rely on every day. Changes in taste and smell are common during cancer treatment and can make eating difficult. It’s important to understand why these changes happen and find simple ways to manage them

What causes the changes?

These changes happen because cancer treatments also affect the body’s fast-growing cells. The taste buds on the tongue and the smell receptors in the nose grow back quickly, so treatments like chemotherapy and radiation can harm them too. This makes it harder for the brain to sense taste and smell the right way. Chemotherapy can also leave a metallic taste because some of the medicines mix with saliva. A dry mouth, mouth infections, or certain medicines can make it worse, changing how food tastes and smells.

Which treatments lead to the changes?

No single treatment causes these changes alone, but these treatments are more likely to lead to sensory changes:

• Chemotherapy: Chemo drugs with platinum-based agents and taxanes can cause a temporary loss of taste and a metallic taste.
• Radiation therapy: Radiation to the head and neck area can destroy the salivary glands and taste buds that cause long-lasting changes.
• Immunotherapy: Targeted therapy and new agents can affect taste and smell, but to a smaller extent than chemotherapy.
• Surgery: Surgical procedures of the head or neck can temporarily affect the taste and smell of functioning nerves.

How to reset the taste buds?

Foods that help manage taste changes require experimentation with flavors. For the metallic taste, citrus fruits, pickles, mint, and high-flavored spices can help cut through it. Strong herbs like basil and rosemary, cheeses, bacon, onion, and garlic can enhance food flavor. Chilled fruits, ice creams, and popsicles can numb the taste buds and make unlikable flavors not that noticeable. For hydration, drink water with lemon slices, ginger ale, and clear broths. This helps keep the mouth moist and washes away the loss of taste residue.

Easy ways to manage taste changes

Try paying attention to the temperature and texture of your food. Eating food that’s cold or at room temperature can make strong smells or odd tastes less noticeable. Using non-metallic utensils can also help if you often get a metallic taste. And don’t forget to keep your mouth clean; brushing your tongue regularly can make food taste fresher

Retraining the senses

Olfactory retraining, or smell therapy, can benefit from the constant loss of taste and changes in smell. Intentionally smelling strong and familiar scents such as lemon, cloves, rose, or eucalyptus twice daily for a few months can help the damaged olfactory nerves to recover.
Managing the changes in taste and smell due to damaged sensory cells is necessary for nutrition and quality. Patients can experiment with strong flavors and temperatures of food while also maintaining oral hygiene, using non-metallic vessels, and olfactory retraining. A study reported that 67.7% of patients undergoing chemotherapy experience changes in taste, and 21.8% have a moderate risk of malnutrition. Managing this actively while understanding its causes can help patients with sensory changes while undergoing and after therapy.