Aims: The emotion of disgust is associated with gastro-intestinal symptoms and aversion to certain foods. Given the frequency with which symptoms of this kind are seen in chemotherapy patients, it would appear to have particular relevance. However, disgust’s role during cancer treatment has been overlooked. The aims of this research were to investigate whether disgust (a) predicted physical symptoms during chemotherapy (particularly, taste- and smell- related changes) and (b) compare its predictive utility against the most commonly-used affective predictor i.e., psychological distress.
Methods: The target sample of this prospective, observational study was 58 participants. Over recruitment ensured that analytical power would not be compromised. Better than expected retention meant that 63 cancer patients completed questionnaires at both baseline (immediately prior to commencing chemotherapy) and follow-up (six weeks later). Predictors (distress, disgust sensitivity and propensity) were assessed at baseline and outcomes (physical symptoms, food sensory-processing) at both baseline and follow-up.
Results: Contrary to expectations, psychological distress did not predict any of the outcomes. However, disgust sensitivity (β = .53; 95% CI = .27, 1.29; p = .003) and propensity (β = -.56; 95% CI -1.20, -.29; p = .002) both predicted food sensory-processing changes, while disgust sensitivity predicted marginally greater symptoms during chemotherapy (β = .34; 95% CI -.04, 1.90; p = .060). Broadly, findings were consistent with expectation insofar as disgust was a better predictor of symptoms than distress.
Conclusions: The study represents the first prospective investigation of disgust’s ability to predict symptoms experienced during chemotherapy. It demonstrates (a) a robust association between disgust and the food sensory-processing changes common in chemotherapy and (b) disgust as potentially being a more useful predictor of food- and digestion-related symptoms than psychological distress. In doing so, it identified hitherto unstudied vulnerabilities and opens new doors for better care during cancer treatment.