I have heard that chemo affects your teeth to a certain extent, and this worries me, as i have a couple of broken teeth which currently do not cause any problems .I am a complete dental phobic, and haven’t been to a dentist for over 24 years, so i don’t want to have to think about going to one now…and frankly, i couldn’t afford it anyway! Can someone put my mind at rest on this one please??
Hi Narnia
Well chemo hasn,t affected my teeth but last year I did suffer badly from mouth ulcers and this year the occasional sore in my mouth. It was recommended that I change to a babys toothbrush as it was gentler on the gums. Maybe if the gums are badly affected then it will have a knock on effect to the teeth.
Soo
It is very important to get teeth in order before chemo if possible. If you don’t then please just make sure you keep your mouth as clean as possible - brush after each meal and use a good mouth wash like Corsodyl Daily.
best wishes Gill
Hi,
there are a number of things that the dentist won’t do while on chemo. they tell you to sort anything out first so you are not in pain during the treatment. My friend had a dodgy tooth and was told it could not be removed when on chemo and chancing an abscess or infection could be a big problem, so recommended to have it taken out before. If the teeth have been like that for a while and don’t hurt, they should stay the same. If they do hurt or there is a hole you have to decide which is the worst - the dentist or something possibly worse if you are unlucky. You could just go along and ask if it could wait till afterwards, if they say yes, your worries are over.
I know how you feel I hate the dentist.
Good luck
Lily x
Hi Narnia, I tried to get a check up at the dentist’s before chemo started, but they really weren’t interested. They just said to come back when it was over. I’ve heard that chemo used to affect your teeth quite badly in the past, but that is not the case now the drugs are more developed. However, I had a bit of my front tooth fall out recently … no pain just looks horrible. So who knows!
Shelagh x
My real problem is that i am so terrifed of dentists that i wouldn’t go, no matter how bad they were! Still, from what you say lalala, maybe i’m worrying unnecessarily? Thankyou all for the advice.
Sheelagh x (one more ‘e’ than you, Shelagh!)
Hi
I had 6 x FEC four years ago and no less than 5 teeth chipped or broke in the three months following treatment. I’ve just finished 6 x Taxotere and have had similar problems this time. Altho’ a lot of my teeth have been affected, the treatment they seem to need is minor and seldom involves more than discomfort - I haven’t neeeded injections.
Dentists are very wary of people on chemo - I think it because your mouth is so full of bacteria, they are unwilling to give local anaesthetics there. However, I did actually need a filling during Taxotere, which the dentist did without a injection - not pleasant, but not as bad as I thought it was going to be
Sorry to hear about yours, narnia, and your dentist 'phobia. (And the charges don’t help either, do they?!) Hope your teeth do well - not everyone has these problems, it seems. Incidentally, I too was advised to avoid electric toothbrushes whilst having chemo and stick to a soft bristled brush - similar idea to using that baby’s toothbrush, I imagine.
X
S
Hi Narnia,
just a thought…my best friend has had severe dental phobia all her life…wouldn’t even sit in the chair.( she lived in Llanberis).
I am not sure how she got referred but goes to see a specialist dentist who is an “expert” and she still goes to him more than 10 years later- it is also free. he is in the North Wales area and visits a few different towns. I am sure if you ring your nearest dental hospital they may have someone similar where you live?
It took 5 years of “only looking with a mirror” but she has made progress and he understands when she backs out of appointments because of fear and is not removed from the practice list because she doesn’t keep up with check ups etc.
I had an abcess whilst on chemo- not pleasant but antibiotics worked after a few days without physical/manual intervention.
All the best,
V.
Hi Narnia
I got an infected impacted wisdom tooth halfway through chemo and my treatment was suspended…was due to be knocked out to have it removed in hospital but found a private dentist for nervous patients. She numbed me totally and pulled it out literally within seconds. It really really wasnt scary at all so dont worry. Im sure you wont need anything done and if you do it will be ok.
My teeth looked rather grubby when my chemo was finished so I had them whitened with the money I saved on hair dressing! 
Best wishes and happy new year to you from Judy x
oh lordie…might have to ask the chemo team if i can have some teeth pulled at the hospital then, before i start chemo…i just can’t go to a dentist, i really can’t, makes my stomach turn over just thinking about it.Silly in the great scheme of other things isn’t it, but there you are, we all have our achilles heel, and dentists is mine!
Oh lord, Narnia, here we go again. I’m sure you and I were separated at birth! I too have a couple of dodgy teeth that I’ve been worrying about re: the chemo treatment, and don’t know whether to go or wait. I think you and I are on some sort of parallel universe. The same ‘stuff’ is happening to both of us at exactly the same time! Happy New Year to us! x Jackie x
Jackie…your turn to copy me huh??? :)…I have decided that I WILL ask the chemo crew to refer me to the hospital dental dept, maybe ask them to just whip the whole lot out and have done with them! They might be able to refer me to Bristol where they can do proper work on my teeth, so i don’t have to go again for another 24 years!I suspect I have my parents to thank for this, both of them had dodgy teeth and both were ‘reluctant’ to go to the dentist, in fact dad used to tell me awful tales about the RAF dentist we had to go to as children (dad was in the RAF)…in spite of this, i used to go quite merrily until I had a couple of very bad experiences with them, hence my fears now.silly, really silly…
narnia
please don’t have all your teeth out - a good dentist will not do that anyway
you just need a good sympathetic person who will spend some time to work with you - you prob have not got as many probs as you think you have.
take care
gill