Mike thanks so much for your reply.i have suffered with very sore gums for most of my life as i am one of those idiots who tend to scrub the hell out of my teeth with smokers toothpaste and a hard bristle brush to get the coffee stains off!!Then they bleed like mad and i cant brush them properly for days.

On the bottom left of my mouth i have had my wisdom tooth and a large double tooth removed so i have got nothing there but gum and yes it gets very sore and raw feeling a lot of the time particularly if i eat sharp food like crisps or cream crackers and after brushing.It is the side i always chew my food on and i often have pain like a tooth ache then wonder how it can feel like that when i havent got any teeth there.I always put it down to the fact that i had a huge abscess under the tooth before it was removed,and then suffered a dry socket infection afterwards.I use corsydl mouthwash when it is very sore and this usually helps.
When i went to the dentist yesterday the gum was extremely sore,(but not as bad as the side where the bad tooth was!!)and very raw feeling ,but he said it was the white patch on it which i cant say i have ever noticed that was his reason for calling me back.
I am terrified of dentists Mike amd i am sure my petrification at the prospect of needles prior to the extraction he did was his reason for being reluctant to upset me any further and he removed the tooth in just about the most painless manner imaginable.At the moment the extraction site is MUCH less painful than the offending piece of gum,which i just cant stop prodding at with my tongue.

He did a full exam and even showed me the x-rays and talked me through what he could see on them, which is why i was so bemused when the nurse rang and said it was something he had spotted on the films . You must take in too account that i was in agony with toothache at the time and shaking like a jelly about the treatment he was
about to carry out.

Mike i will be grateful if you can hold my hand through the next few days although my whole instinct is telling me this is NOT a cause for panic and i feel eerily calm.
I dont doubt the calmness will vanish when the phone call comes.lol

liz

Liz,
In my experience soft tissue changes ( hypekeatosis ) do not show up on x-rays. I would be lying if I said this guy was working within the normal acceptable standard of practice.
I'm here, lean on me if you feel I can help, I'm here for you.

Cheers,

Mike

Sorry Mike i obviously misled you.He did the x-rays prior to the tooth extraction and when he showed them to me he said they were fine except for an area of infection under the tooth that was bad.Thats how i knew when his nurse rang and said he wanted to see me because of something he had spotted on the x-rays that something wasnt right

liz

LIZ

OH Man ..I cant even imagine what it was like for you hearing those words. But like you know and we all do ( yet hard to relax) take a deep breathe and wait for the biopsy .

You have so much knowledge and sometimes that can be even scarier , we know too much . BUT I am thinking of you and I agree with Mike in that he should have never let you walk out of his office , but he did call you back . It is best to get it checked and I think you agree. PLease know that my thoughts are with you . I wish you could be closer so we could actually be there . I wish everyone was close enough .

Shar

Liz,

I will be thinking about you and sending good thoughts your way.

I think you are in better hands with this dentist than Rob's. He seems very human to me in being concerned about your health and your emotional state. It is nice to me to read about a doctor/dentist who sees you as a person instead of just a symptom. Even though he sent you home for a couple hours, it sounds like he never stopped thinking about you. You're probably still in his thoughts today. (Mike, I'm not trying to disagree with you from a protocol standpoint...I'm just sharing my thoughts from a patient/personal perspective).

I'm sure he is being super cautious. Liz, wasn't it you who wrote to me when I was frustrated that both of my kids had to have CT scans for swollen lymph glands that you thought it always best to err on the side of extra procedures and over caution?

I think gut instinct is a powerful thing. I can feel your fear, but also your belief that this isn't cancer. Hold onto that belief as you go through the procedures.

I didn't think my kids lymph nodes were anything to worry about, although I did pick up on the doctors' fears. I went ahead with the procedures and all was well. I hated putting each of them through the ordeal, but in the end everyone had peace of mind.

It's an oft-repeated line but it worth repeating...it's not cancer until the biopsy says so. With that logic, right now you are cancer free. And, there's a good chance you will be cancer free after the biopsy too.

My you have had so much to deal with this year.

Many, many good thoughts to you my dear friend. Whatever the news, we will rejoice with you, we will support you, we will be here for you...just as you have been here for each of us through our times of joy and/or concern.

So cookey---how are you doing this weekend after all the good advice you've had???
Still feeling shitty and scared, I bet, and hoping for a phone call on Monday---which we both know might not happen cos this is NHS, England!
You have my number---NEVER do 'I nearly rang you'---just DO IT!!!
Obviously, from your posts, your mum knows and is supporting---what about Lynnne and co---do they know and are 'there' for you??? If not---GET THEM THERE!
I'm here babe, we all are, ring or email any time, I'm sleeping lots at the moment--still blaming it on jet-lag, not cancer! But always know, I'm available! Roll on next Sunday girl!
Love Bren x

Liz,
Sending lots of love your way.
Donna

Liz,
Sending lots of love your way.
Donna

Hi there Bren

Funnily enough i dont feel shitty or scared,i was much more scared about the lump in my neck than this.It is the same side funnily enough and perhaps because i had the scan ,and they covered the area under my jaw and up to my ear and found it clear,is the reason i am quite calm.I dont really mind if they cant do the biopsy till i get back from overseas.

I think because i have read so much about hyperkeratosis,and lichus planus amd leukoplakia,and seen so many come on the boards and go away again after good news it has given me a much more positive mind set.

Mum was with me when i went to the dentist and of course insisted on going with me when he called me back,and i rang the kids straight away,so yes every one is on board,and Lynne and Philip both phoned yesterday to check up on me .

I am lying in bed listening to the rain and wind battering against my windows and praying that the forecast for next Sunday is better.

You get all the rest you need and dont worry about me i am good so far.

love liz

Liz,

Just saw your post, can't get my head round it, how fab you are to reach out and help me when you have so much else going on.

Pull up the duvet

Andrea