I smell cigarette smoke!
I smell cigarette smoke constantly! No one is smoking and no one around me smells it. It's driving me crazy. I had 4 rounds of TAC last year, a bmx, 4 rounds of Abraxane earlier this year, 35 rounds of radiation over the summer and just had an ooph on Tuesday. Did one of these things cause my sense of smell to go haywire? Oh yeah, I was taking Tamoxifen intil a couple of weeks ago......
Anyone else experience this? Did you find out what was causing it?
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Hi Romansma! Some breast cancer treatments can actually affect your sense of smell -- check out Taste and Smell Changes on the main Breastcancer.org site.
Sure someone will be by to comment on their experiences soon as well!
Hope this helps!
--Your Mods
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You are off the tamoxifen now? How come -- was it because you had the ooph? Just curious -- Happy Holidays ! --Shelly
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Sometimes the chemo can give your body an odd odor, so that may be what you are smelling.
Was the "T" you took Taxotere or Taxol? I started getting a odor after taking Taxotere. My hubby had a bad odor when he was on chemo.
It does go away in time. NJ
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My best friend and i were talking about this the other day on the phone, she said she smelled smoke all the time and it was driving her nuts, i googled it and found that migranes can cause somthing like this, i asked her if she had been having headaches, she said she did. Dont know how much truth there is to this but thought i would mention it, do you have headaches and have you asked your onco about this?
Best wishes and hugs
Debbie
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Me too!! So this means there has to be something related. i had 6 rounds of TAC and am on arimidex. I would run to the window to see if the neighbors across the street were out, it was at christmas when I was out of school. I was hoping they were out there ...smoking, but no one was ever there. Then it was as if someone was in my attic smoking...I would go check my kids rooms too. It was always just a hint of it, enough to annoy. Haven't smelled it for awhile though.
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Me too!! So this means there has to be something related. i had 6 rounds of TAC and am on arimidex. I would run to the window to see if the neighbors across the street were out, it was at christmas when I was out of school. I was hoping they were out there ...smoking, but no one was ever there. Then it was as if someone was in my attic smoking...I would go check my kids rooms too. It was always just a hint of it, enough to annoy. Haven't smelled it for awhile though.
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I didn't smell smoke, but anything with a "chemical" smell totally made me queasy while I was in chemo. It got so bad that I had to ask my husband to close the bathroom door before he left for work because the smell of the mouthwash would make me nauseated. Not sure if perhaps the combo you've had has had some lingering after effects. Hopefully they'll be gone soon. Be sure to check w/your onc to see what they say.
Sharon
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Me too - but mine has been years before I found out I have BC. I wonder if it is something to do with my sinus/hayfever problems, was supposed to go to a ENT specialist to have it checked out, but then I found out i had BC, and everything seems to go on the back burner then doesn't it? (no pun intended lol)
Dawn
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I thought it was just me! I'm in the middle of my TAC regimen now (Tx#4 is Thursday) and occasionally I've been getting these whiffs of a smoke smell. I even turned our gas heat off for a while last week because I thought there was something wrong, but my husband & kids didn't smell anything - and my husband is normally the one with the sensitive nose. I'm so glad to hear I'm not alone...I guess I really can blame everything on chemo.
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I had the same experience during and for a few years after my pregnancy--smelling cigarette smoke where there was none. Must be something with hormones/body chemistry....
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I've been smelling it, too. I complained at work for a few days when finally a young man I work with said he didn't smell anything. I am relieved it may be a side effect of chemotherapy.
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I think I got it on the FEC (E is similar to your A and the C is the same). I seem to remember my onc saying it was caused by the epirubicin (the E or the A). For me it came on strongly and suddenly as the stupid poison was dripping into my arm. It did eventually go away though.
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2 days away from reaching 6 years cancer free. I had ductal invasive stage 1 and I started smelling smoke during chemo. After I was done it got so bad I felt like I was suffocating. It went away thank god, it has reappeared briefly over the last 6 years but now it is back with a vengeance. I do t understand. I'll be talking to my Oncologist in a couple weeks and ask. Driving me crazy.
Why it happens, I'm not so sure but I know it is not coffee beans, it is not Migraines, it is not brain metastasis. It's an effect of chemo and I've heard from others They have experienced this same phenomenon.
For all cancer patients and survivors, Eat vegetables, minimize or eliminate meat, cheese and sugars, take vitamins and other supplements and teas. Heal your gut, boost your metabolism, pray, be thankful, forgive, and exercise. Peace and love.
If you have information about this smoke smell or would like to talk, please contact me at buffburns@hotmail.co
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I experienced this during chemo also and 6 years later experiencing it again awful. Thanks for your post. This is excellent information and informative.
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2 days away from reaching 6 years cancer free. I had ductal invasive stage 1 and I started smelling smoke during chemo. After I was done it got so bad I felt like I was suffocating. It went away thank god, it has reappeared briefly over the last 6 years but now it is back with a vengeance. I do t understand. I'll be talking to my Oncologist in a couple weeks and ask. Driving me crazy.
Why it happens, I'm not so sure but I know it is not coffee beans, it is not Migraines, it is not brain metastasis. It's an effect of chemo and I've heard from others They have experienced this same phenomenon.
If you have information about this smoke smell or would like to talk about anything else, please feel free tocontact me.
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Has the smell been back? Mine is after 6 years. Ugh
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mejane,
I am so sorry that you are having this issue. You might want to consider removing your personal email address from your post (the moderators may remove it if they see it). This site is viewable to anyone, even non-members, so putting your personal email address out there is a bad idea. You can invite people to pm you on this site which is private for members.
This thread has been inactive for 7 years. It’s an interesting topic so starting new thread might be a good idea. All the best
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This happened to me twice in the last month. It was fleeting but couldn't figure out why I smelled it. The only thing I am on is Anastrozole. Just to clarify, it was cigarette smoke I smelled
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I have experienced the smoke smell at times, too.
Last winter I saw an ENT who said that I could go for a brain scan, but the fact that I've had this since chemo, and on and off for years made him feel it was nothing serious.
I hope he's right! ( I havent gone for the scan as of now.)
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I am so glad to hear that I am not the only one. I did not have this smell of smoke DURING chemo, but rather after. Almost hitting the 3-year mark but still the smell. I tried asking my oncologist, but said never heard of it.
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I am almost 5 years NED and this phantom cigarette smell comes and goes. It started a few years ago. I mentioned it to my onco and she said she's never heard of this. It will go away for months, but then when it comes back, it lasts for weeks and bothers the heck out of me! I am glad to find this thread because it means I'm not crazy!! Wish I could find some research on this though.
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