.png)
人類生病時除了藉由一些症狀、檢驗判斷，竟然也能靠鼻子聞出來？一名現年76歲的退休護士喬伊（Joy Milne），18年前在已故丈夫身上聞到了「帕金森氏症」的味道，多年來她與曼徹斯特大學合作，不但證實了帕金森真的聞得出來，還開發出一種用於早期檢測的試紙，甚至還延伸至不同疾病，真的會散發出不一樣的味道！
帕金森氏症是木質調？
據《BBC》、《People》等外媒報導，喬伊最初發現先生身上出現了一股有別以往的麝香、木質調的味道，且隨著時間越久越來越濃，後來他被確診為帕金森氏症，而喬伊也在陪病的時候也意外發現，其他患者身上竟散發出相同氣味！
喬伊把這些資訊告訴帕金森氏症相關專家，原本專家認為不可能，但後來有研究顯示狗能嗅出癌症，專家進一步透過各項實驗，證實喬伊真的具有一般人沒有的靈敏嗅覺。
Joy Milne, a retired nurse from Scotland, first noticed a distinct, subtle "musky" smell on her husband, Les, about 10 to 12 years before he was officially diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1994. At the time, she didn't connect the odor to any medical condition, assuming it was just sweat or a change in his body chemistry. It wasn't until years later, when attending a Parkinson's support group with Les, that Joy realized every person in the room shared that exact same distinct scent, prompting her to believe that Parkinson's disease carried a unique olfactory signature. Intrigued by her claim, researchers at the University of Edinburgh, led by Dr. Tilo Kunath, decided to test Joy's ability through a double-blind study. Joy was given 12 plain T-shirts, six worn by confirmed Parkinson's patients and six worn by healthy control subjects. Joy correctly identified all six Parkinson's patients, but she also insisted that one of the control group members had the disease. Although marked as an error initially, the story took an incredible turn eight months later when that specific control subject was officially diagnosed with Parkinson's, revealing Joy had a 100% accuracy rate and had detected the disease long before clinical symptoms appeared. Joy's extraordinary olfactory sensitivity, a condition known as hyperosmia, led scientists to investigate what compounds she was actually smelling. Researchers discovered that the distinct odor stems from volatile chemical changes in sebum, the oily substance secreted by the skin, which is altered by Parkinson's disease. Joy’s gift has since paved the way for scientists to develop early diagnostic tools, including skin swabs and mass spectrometry tests, aimed at identifying Parkinson’s years before motor symptoms begin. Joy Milne’s incredible olfactory ability extends far beyond Parkinson's disease and it comes at a significant personal cost. Joy is an extreme "super-smeller" due to hyperosmia. Researchers have traveled with her internationally to test her ability to detect other conditions; she has helped scientists conduct preliminary odor research on tuberculosis (TB) in Tanzania, as well as cancer and Alzheimer's disease in the U.S. While her nose is a gift to medical science, Joy has often described her heightened sense of smell as an everyday burden. Everyday environments can be overwhelmingly painful for her. She has to strategically plan her routine, often doing grocery shopping very early in the morning or late at night to avoid the heavy perfumes worn by shoppers, and actively avoiding the household chemical and detergent aisles in supermarkets entirely because the artificial fragrances are so agonizingly intense. #archaeohistories
— ArchaeoHistories (@histories_arch) August 16, 2026
後來喬伊與曼徹斯特大學團隊合作，利用質譜儀，辨別出帕金森氏症之所以會有特殊體味，和患者的4種皮脂化合物有關，其中二十烷、馬尿酸和十八醛的濃度高於正常值，另一種成份紫蘇酸則含量特低，這些正是讓他們聞起來不一樣的關鍵。
結核病、阿茲海默症、癌症聞起來都不一樣
研究團隊透過這項發現，致力於在患者出現症狀前就可及早檢測的方法，且近年研究人員還發現，喬伊的「超能力」非常不尋常，她還能聞出結核病、阿茲海默症、癌症和糖尿病的味道！全球的專家們也爭相與她合作，希望透過她的鼻子，為各種疾病找到更佳解決的辦法。
喬伊聞得出疾病味道，近日也在社群引發討論，有網友分享自身經驗：「帕金森真的是木質調的味道」、「有的人身上也會有所謂的老人味」、「要下雨之前的味道我也聞得到」、「人的五感好強大」。
其實根據研究，人體透過呼吸、皮脂、汗水與尿液，都在持續釋放超過2,500種揮發性有機化合物（VOCs），這些氣體分子就像是每個人獨一無二的「生物氣味條碼」，且會隨著環境、身體狀況、年齡增長和精神狀況產生不一樣的變化，這也是為什麼同一瓶香水，每個人使用後聞起來會不一樣的關鍵呢。
