NSCLS - Stage 4 Loss of taste/foul smell

ancynay
ancynay Member Posts: 1
edited March 2014 in Lung Cancer #1
Can anyone offer any suggestions or remedies for a foul smell in nose &/or taste in mouth (perhaps a metallic taste but not real sure how to describe it). This actually began before chemo treatments & so not absolutely sure what is causing it. More than likely, the chemo (Paclitaxel & Carboplatin) are now adding to it as well. This is having adverse effects on being able to eat. Literally, having to force food down & no differentiating in taste with any foods.
Is there anything at all that can be taken to combat this problem?

Comments

  • CinciRick
    CinciRick Member Posts: 23
    #2
    Hi Ancynay,

    While I was on Taxol (Placlitaxel) I did experience a change in my sense of taste but not the metallic taste you describe. Some of it is because of my persistant cought I ate a lot of cough drops, mints, and chewed gum. I can tell you what I was taking during the Taxol treatments.

    1x - Once-a-day multivitamin (Senior Complete)
    3x - Fish oil Omega 3 softgels
    1x - Potassium Gluconate 99 mg
    2x - Coral Calcium with Vitain D & Magnesium 1000 mg
    1x - B-12 2500 mcg
    1x - Folic Acid 400 mcg


    Folic acid needs the catalysts vitamins B12 and B6. B6 should be in your multivitamin.
    Your body has trouble processing calcium without Vitamin D & Magnesium so they sell capsules that contail all 3.
    The One-A-Day multivitamin contails 400 mcg of Folic Acid but I add another 400 mcg to combat some of the chemo side effects. Somewhere I read a recomended dose of 800 - 1000 during chemo.

    The Taxol did cause me to loose hair but I never had any of the fingertip or finger nail problems.
    If you have trouble with your fingertips and nails do research on L-Glutamine

    I also use an alcohol-free mouthwash after brushing my teeth. I think it is made by Crest.

    Here is a web site about Taxol and taste but they don't offer much help.
    http://www.ufscc.ufl.edu/Patient/content.aspx?section=ufscc&id=23154

    I have learned not to go to an expensive restaurant the evening after chemo. I can't tell the difference between McDonalds and prime rib.

    So I have no idea if the vitamins, random luck, or keeping my throat moist from mints and cough drops may have helped to prevent the severe metallic taset that is troubling you.

    Good luck. CinciRick
  • cabbott
    cabbott Member Posts: 1,039 Member
    #3
    My friends on chemo say that meat made the metallic taste a lot worse. Sucking on mints and hard butterscotch candies helped some. I read a cookbook in the lending library at Johns Hopkins that had lots of other suggestions. Veggies and sweets were tolerated better than meat, custards and potato dishes were also tastier. Small servings more frequently helped with appetite and taste problems. Eating something totally unfamiliar (like maybe a veggie souffle)reduced the "this doesn't taste like it should" problem. You might also check with an ear, nose, and throat specialist if this began before the chemo. Sinus problems can mess up sense of smell and smell is a BIG part of taste, not that I'm telling you anything new there. But sinus problems are correctable and a good doctor can lead you through the steps to figure out what is causing the problem. Good luck!

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