Taste

Hello

I finished CRT treatment early November 2022, had NG tube until mid December then managed to eat a small semi-normal Christmas dinner - with lots of gravy. Taste came back gradually, starting with bland things like porridge and scrambled egg. I remember being so pleased when a cup of tea tasted OK, coffee took longer. I couldn't tolerate acidic foods eg anything tomato-ey, citrus fruits or wine for months. After a year or so my taste buds were pretty much back to normal. I now enjoy spicy curries again.

It takes time but I'm sure your husband will get there.

PS if you write something in your profile it helps us to know what stage you are at

markmac said:

for those who have lost your taste I’d like to do a count of how long did it take for you to actually enjoy your food

I could actually eat soft food ( and strangely a rare steak) by 12 weeks and gradually managed more normal food. By six months I could eat most things, even a mild curry. By a year I was happy with food. For six months I had n o appetite though and ate just to stay alive. If I didn't cook for my husband I could quite easily not bother.

It's a slow process. Some of us get there sooner.

CatSW9 said:

PS if you write something in your profile it helps us to know what stage you are at

I've bumped your thread...

Hi 

Taste started to return around the 6 month mark post chemoradio....then gradually improved....90% now....still improving.... now 20 months post treatment I can enjoy most things...going out for an Indian meal today...will ask for a side plate with a little chicken Madras to see if I can stand it....main course will be chicken Balti....

One of the  first things I could really taste was Guinness alcohol free....around the 4 month mark.

Peter

Done

HI, 

I finished radiotherapy mid December. It was really miserable at first, everything was vile, to the point of anything with fat tasting racid and other things tasting sort of dirty and murky. I found drinking nice clean tasting herbal and fruit teas helped, and I got a juicer for fruit and veg, cos they tasted more or less tolerable. It was kind of like top end tastes improved first. Now we are in Feb and things are significantly improved, I can taste a lot more things, and whilst it is still not normal a lot of things are a lot better (top end tastes), there is a sort of murky dullness to other things, but nothing tastes actually rancid! That was actually really distressing, but it is improving quicker than  I had anticipated. I still have a NG tube, although I am winding that down, and hopefully will be rid of it by the end of the month. 

Hope things improve soon 

 R

HI, 

I finished radiotherapy mid December. It was really miserable at first, everything was vile, to the point of anything with fat tasting racid and other things tasting sort of dirty and murky. I found drinking nice clean tasting herbal and fruit teas helped, and I got a juicer for fruit and veg, cos they tasted more or less tolerable. It was kind of like top end tastes improved first. Now we are in Feb and things are significantly improved, I can taste a lot more things, and whilst it is still not normal a lot of things are a lot better (top end tastes), there is a sort of murky dullness to other things, but nothing tastes actually rancid! That was actually really distressing, but it is improving quicker than  I had anticipated. I still have a NG tube, although I am winding that down, and hopefully will be rid of it by the end of the month. 

Hope things improve soon 

 R

PS I don't know why I cannot edit the first entry and its posting it as separate, Weird