Can you imagine suddenly finding that it hurts to eat? Or that when you take a bite of your favourite meal you feel nothing?

In this episode, we’re talking about something that isn’t much talked about: what happens to your relationship with food when you’ve got cancer.

Ruth Alexander is joined by three women who want you to know about a side effect of treatment that they weren’t fully prepared for - the loss of their sense of taste.

They share how what is a relatively minor detail, given a devastating diagnosis, nevertheless had a huge effect on their everyday routine, their interactions with family and friends, their sense of self.

Hear how they learned to cope and how, out of the depths of this distressing experience, came a new appreciation of the everyday.

If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk

(Picture: Grapefruit with pills coming out of it. Credit: Getty/BBC)

Producer:

Sarah Stolarz


Contributors:

Heather McCollum

Semira Oguntoyinbo

Angharad Underwood