Taste alteration in children with cancer before and during chemotherapy

Chemotherapy treatment may cause taste alteration in children and may adversely affect taste acuity. This study was conducted to investigate the changes in taste before and during chemotherapy in children with cancer. It is a descriptive and cross-sectional study. The population of the study consisted of children aged 8-18 years who were followed up and received chemotherapy in the pediatric hematology and oncology clinic of Gaziantep University Medical Faculty Oncology Hospital between February 2021 and September 2022. The sample size of the study was determined as 15 children by power analysis. The Child Identification Form, the Taste Alteration Scale for Children Receiving Chemotherapy (KAC-TADO) and the Subjective Total Taste Acuity Scale (STTKO) were used to collect the data. Before starting chemotherapy, the Children's Introductory Form, KAC-TADO and STTKO were administered to the children by the researcher through face-to-face interviews. Then, in the 3rd and 6th week of chemotherapy, the section of the Child Identification Form related to the child's disease, the KAC-TADO and the STTKO were administered to the same children. Shapiro Wilk normality test, Content Validity Index (KGI), mean, number and percentage distributions, Cronbach's Alpha coefficient, Wilcoxon test and Friedman test were used to analyze the data. It was determined that 13.3% of the children before chemotherapy, 53.3% in the 3rd week of chemotherapy and 66.7% in the 6th week of chemotherapy experienced taste changes. The mean total score of the KAC-TADO was 1.86±2.72 before chemotherapy, 4.40±5.77 at the 3rd week of chemotherapy and 5.26±6.28 at the 6th week of chemotherapy. It was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the KAC-TADO administered before chemotherapy and at the 3rd and 6th week of chemotherapy (p<0.05). In addition, taste acuity was found to be higher in the 3rd and 6th week of chemotherapy compared to before chemotherapy. As a result, it was determined that both taste alteration and taste acuity in children were higher in the 3rd and 6th week of chemotherapy compared to pre-chemotherapy. Keywords: Before Chemotherapy, During Chemotherapy, Nursing, Taste alteration