Sangita, a 45-year-old woman with large-cell lung carcinoma reported an unpleasant sweet taste which was later diagnosed as dysgeusia or a taste disorder. All foods, in the opinion of those suffering from this illness, taste sour, sweet, bitter, or metallic. One of the frequent side effects of lung cancer is dysgeusia. Despite the fact that there are numerous lung cancer symptoms, doctors typically notice changes in taste and odour (TSAs). TSAs can alter a patient’s food choices, decrease nutritional intake, increase the possibility of weight loss, and affect the patient’s quality of life in terms of their health by lowering their level of food satisfaction. TSAs may already exist at the time of the initial diagnosis or may appear as the tumour is being treated. A typical side effect of lung cancer, medicines, and chemotherapy treatments is a metallic taste, which includes a bitter or sour taste. It frequently results in poor nutrition since it makes people dislike specific foods because they taste weird or unpleasant. This frequently results in people eating less or choosing unhealthy foods.
A few of the common side effects of dysgeusia are people opting to eat hotter, saltier, or excessively sweet meals in order to counteract the unpleasant taste brought on by dysgeusia. Due to this, people frequently consume more sugar and sodium, which might complicate matters or result in new health issues.
(The author is an oncologist and the principal director of a cancer care institute.)
Published 25 March 2023, 19:20 IST