Help needed on how to overcome smells in order to eat?

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WendyBell5
WendyBell5 Member Posts: 2
edited March 2014 in Esophageal Cancer #1
Hi EC Members,
I have been stalking your forum in search of answers to help my father who was diagnosed with Stage III EC in April. I couldn't find the answer I was looking for so I decided to join and post my question. Everyone on this forum seems so great and helpful. My Dad is on his 5th round of Chemo (6 weeks in) and second week of Radiation every day. We are having extreme difficulty in getting him to eat. He says it's not the texture of the food but the smell that he can't get past. Has anyone found a way to block out the smell other than holding their nose?

Any help is appreciated!

Best Regards,

Wendy

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  • BMGky
    BMGky Member Posts: 621
    #2
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    Overcoming smells
    My husband experienced this and couldn't even stand the sight of food commercials at times. I couldn't find anything he could eat. He got to where he would eat nothing by mouth. He could not stomach the liquid supplements. Became severely dehydrated, experienced sudden and extreme weight loss, and had to have a jtube. I was first appalled at having to deal with the jtube because I didn't have a clue what to do. However, the nutritionists show you what to do and it became his best friend. His weight loss stabilized and he regained his strength enough to undergo the surgery. He had 6 weeks of radiation as well as having two rounds of chemo that utilized a pump. The last radiation really zapped him. So I don't have any answers but wanted to let you know that others have experienced the same thing. If a jtube is recommended, follow their advices as it helps immensely.
  • Bolt_Woman
    Bolt_Woman Member Posts: 11
    #3
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    My husband had the same
    My husband had the same issues during chemo and radiation. The smell of food was so nauseating to him I had to take the cats and dog outside to feed them. If items were cold; i.e., Ensure Plus, cold peaches, jello, graham crackers etc he was able to eat but absolutely nothing prepared. I found you can get a lot of nutrition into a very limited menu. This phase does pass!!!!
  • WendyBell5
    WendyBell5 Member Posts: 2
    #4
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    Bolt_Woman said:

    My husband had the same
    My husband had the same issues during chemo and radiation. The smell of food was so nauseating to him I had to take the cats and dog outside to feed them. If items were cold; i.e., Ensure Plus, cold peaches, jello, graham crackers etc he was able to eat but absolutely nothing prepared. I found you can get a lot of nutrition into a very limited menu. This phase does pass!!!!

    Thanks!
    Thanks to both of you. I will pass all of this information on to my Dad.

    Wendy
  • jethro-t
    jethro-t Member Posts: 20
    #5
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    overcome smells to eat
    My husband has been eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for months now. he is finally overcoming this phase of the chemo, but these sandwiches are the only thing he could stomach and they dont' really smell.

    Hope this helps.
    rhonda

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