Attempts to prevent dysgeusia through the prophylactic use of zinc sulfate or amifostine have been of limited benefit .
Nutritional counseling may be helpful to some patients in minimizing the symptoms of dysgeusia .
Conclusions Dysgeusia is a common oral side effect of cancer therapy ( radiotherapy , chemotherapy , or combined modality therapy ) and often impacts negatively on quality of life .
From the current literature , there does not appear to be a predictable way of preventing or treating dysgeusia
Purpose The purpose was to review relevant scientific papers written since 1989 which focused on the prevalence and management of  dysgeusia as an oral side effect of cancer treatment .
Neovastat (AE-941) in refractory renal cell carcinoma patients: report of a phase II trial with two dose levels.
BACKGROUND renal cell carcinoma ( RCC ) is a potential target for anti-angiogenic drugs because of its high vascularization . Neovastat ( AE-941 ) is an inhibitor of angiogenesis with a mechanism of action that could prove beneficial in the treatment of RCC . Patients and design A phase II trial was conducted to identify the long-term safety profile of Neovastat in advanced cancer patients and to obtain preliminary information on its efficacy in solid tumors refractory to st and ard treatments . Neovastat ( 60 or 240 ml/day ) was administered orally ( b.i.d . ) to 144 patients with solid tumors refractory to st and ard therapies or for whom no st and ard treatments were available . RESULTS A survival analysis was conducted on 22 patients with a primary diagnosis of refractory RCC to determine whether the dose of Neovastat had any effect . A significant relationship between dose and survival was observed ; the median survival time was significantly longer ( 16.3 versus 7.1 months ; P = 0.01 ) in patients treated with Neovastat 240 ml/day ( n = 14 ) compared with patients receiving 60 ml/day ( n = 8) . No dose-limiting toxicity was reported . The most frequent adverse event was taste alteration ( 13.6 % ) . CONCLUSIONS Neovastat is well tolerated by advanced cancer patients at doses of 60 and 240 ml/day . The higher dose of Neovastat administered in this trial is associated with a survival benefit in RCC , which is not explained by differences in major prognostic factors
Attempts to prevent dysgeusia through the prophylactic use of zinc sulfate or amifostine have been of limited benefit .
Nutritional counseling may be helpful to some patients in minimizing the symptoms of dysgeusia .
Conclusions Dysgeusia is a common oral side effect of cancer therapy ( radiotherapy , chemotherapy , or combined modality therapy ) and often impacts negatively on quality of life .
From the current literature , there does not appear to be a predictable way of preventing or treating dysgeusia
Purpose The purpose was to review relevant scientific papers written since 1989 which focused on the prevalence and management of  dysgeusia as an oral side effect of cancer treatment .