She first noticed the unusual "musky" smell on her husband when he was 33, but assumed it was just sweat from a long day's work in the hospital.
But 12 years later, Joy Milne's husband Les was diagnosed with the incurable condition Parkinson's disease. It turns out, the 72-year-old gran from Perth had unknowingly been smelling the condition for decades.
Dubbed a “super-smeller” by experts, Joy has amazed scientists all over the world with her powerful sense of smell that can detect Parkinson's in someone years before they are diagnosed with the condition.
She's able to diagnose people with the disease just by smelling their t-shirts they have slept in and can even smell strangers who have Parkinson’s while in the supermarket or walking down the street.
Now, the gran-of-seven has has helped scientists to develop a "groundbreaking" new test for the condition. While still in the early phases of research, scientists are excited about the prospect of the NHS being able to deploy a simple test for the disease.
The retired nurse has a rare condition which gives her a heightened sense of smell - and said she has always had the acute sense for as long as she can remember.
Joy first detected Parkinson's in her late husband Les, who was a doctor, when he started smelling differently - but it wasn't until more than a decade years later that he was officially diagnosed with the condition, which he would battle until he sadly passed away in 2015.
Joy described Les's new body aroma as "muskier" than normal. She previously told the Daily Record: "He was a consultant anaesthetist at a hospital and was very busy with long hours in theatre.
"He started to become very tired and I presumed the smell was due to him sweating and being more tired. He later developed difficulties with all kind of simple things."
Joy's discovery was quickly picked up by scientists and researchers all over the country when she made the announcement at a Parkinson's UK meeting in Edinburgh in 2012.
Confident in her ability to identify Parkinson's patients with her heightened sense of smell, she began working with researcher Dr Kilo Tunath who had never seen anything like it before.
With the help of scientists, she began a series of experiments where she would smell the T-shirts of people with and without Parkinson's to identify patients.
She was able to correctly identify who was suffering with the condition, and in one case even identified someone that would then be diagnosed eight months later.
Scientists believe that the change in smell is down to a chemical change in skin oil, known as sebum, which is triggered by Parkinson's disease.
The retired nurse said that she can sometimes smell people who have Parkinson’s while in the supermarket or walking down the street but has been told by medical ethicists she cannot tell them.
She said: "Which GP would accept a man or a woman walking in saying ‘the woman who smells Parkinson’s has told me I have it’? Maybe in the future but not now."
Joy's impressive sense of smell is now helping scientists develop a new test for Parkinson's - as there is no definitive test for it at the moment.
It's mainly diagnosed based on medical history and symptoms, but scientists are developing a new test that could hopefully be used within the NHS.
Using a simple skin swab along the back of the neck, the test could be rolled out in hospitals soon if successful in lab testing.
Joy is even hopeful that her powerful nose could detect other illnesses, such as cancer and tuberculosis (TB).
There is no cure for Parkinson's, and there are around 145,000 people living with the condition in the UK.
Joy said: "For Les, the destructive nature of his Parkinson’s meant that he soon struggled with some simple things, like playing a game of darts with his family.
"Les was really supportive of the research and he was confident that an early diagnosis could mean earlier treatment.
"It is exciting to think that the research has the potential to provide a test for Parkinson’s and it would be marvelous if it could bring us closer to a cure."
What are the symptoms of Parkinson's?
Parkinson's is a condition that affects parts of the brain for many years.
According to the NHS, there are three main symptoms that can affect physical movement:
- tremor – shaking, which usually begins in the hand or arm and is more likely to occur when the limb is relaxed and resting
- slowness of movement - where physical movements are much slower than normal, making everyday tasks difficult
- muscle stiffness - tension in the muscles, which makes it difficult to move around and make facial expressions
Some other symptoms include excessive sweating, problems sleeping, a loss of smell and depression.
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