My husband finished all of his radiation and chemo treatments in December of 2008. He went for a dental check-up yesterday and the dentist said that one of his back teeth on the radiated side was slightly loose. My husband's surgeon and radiologist told him previously that it was dangerous to have a tooth extracted after treatments due to lose of blood flow to the area. Has anyone else dealt with this? Can you offer suggestions? Thank you.

There are several folks that will be able to offer their personal experiences with extractions. Yes this needs to be done with care. Most of the time HBO (Hyperbaric Oxygen) treatments will be done to improve the blood flow in the area first.

I suggest discussing this with a specialized dentist (one very familiar with radiated patients) or oral surgeon before having any extraction.

I have had experience and can help you. Basically what happens is that radiation makes it so things dont heal properly. Thru having the hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) treatments, it forces oxygen into your system to promote better blood flow which the make healing faster and easier. Ive done 85 and it is the easiest treatment I did. HBO isnt available everwhere. It is necessary to do this to prevent further problems and surgeries.

Christine

Does HBO help with healing other head and neck areas after radiation?

Thanks
Sandy S.

The answer, Sandy is YES!

Its for wound care, arthritis, etc. Ive seen alot of diabetic people who have lost their foot at HBO. Or the nursing home patients who have severe bed sores there too. Studies are now saying it can help autism, pain, fatigue even anemia. It worked wonders for me.

skp,

I had a very similar situation to the one you are describing involving your husband. About a month prior to my Dx of Base of Tongue right side, I had undergone a major dental project involving the replacement of a lower right side 4 tooth bridge with my wisdom tooth serving as the rear anchor. Several months following my Tx I began to experience very slight pain from the area around this wisdom tooth. I went to my general dentist who in his 30 plus years of practice had had very little experience with a head/neck cancer patient and the resulting problems from treatment. He did take an xray and was shocked to see that there was virtually no bone present holding the widsom tooth. He said probably the forward anchor tooth was all that was actually holding the entire bridge in place. This is then when the headaches began.

Bottom line, I went under the care of an Oral Surgeon who was very familiar with the situation and he prescribed that I undergo 20 HBO treatments prior to his removing the wisdom tooth followed by 10 more afterwards. It was explained to me that this would lessen the possiblity of contracting ORN from roughly a 25 to 30% chance to less than 5%. It just so happened that I ended up falling into the aforementioned 5% with ORN after all. Not only that but the HBO treatments caused permanent damage to my previous perfect distance vision but corrected my near vision to where I no longer need magnifier reading glasses. I had been using 2.50 power readers for several years.

I guess I have mixed feelings regarding the results I received from the HBO treatments although my Oral Surgeon seems to think we have the ORN under control and that it could have been worse without the HBO treatments. I guess there is no way to know for sure.

Bill D.

I also have a problem re teeth. I finished tx two years ago and three months ago one of my teeth seemed to be loose (my bottom teeth have been painful since tx), Anyway the tooth fell out with a bit of help. There was very little bleeding, but now another tooth is loose, does this mean that they all might fall out????
William, I experienced the exact same problems with my eyes as you have, I have been wearing reading glasses for 12 years,and had perfect distance vision, but suddenly about eighteen months ago my distance vision went, but I could read without readers, but I have never had any HBO. My sight continued to deteriorate until I could hardly see so had a check up, and was told I had cataracts and that they could have been caused by the radiation. I also had a minor detachment of the retina??? I have had one of my eyes operated on and it is so weird especially being on the computer with one eye with near perfect vision and the other one almost blind.

I would really like to hear if any one else is having teething troubles.

Margie

Hi Margie. I lost all of my teeth due to radiation. My teeth were ok but not the ebst before radiation. After radiation they started to shift and were all loose. My teeth had been pretty straight but became all twisted and crooked from shifting so much. I could barely eat because they got so bad. I did lot of HBO and in March had the teeth all surgically removed. It will take 6 months to heal before I am allowed to get dentures fitted. I wish you the best of luck with yoru teeth. If they are loose you may have the same problems I did, but I hope not. Its not easy going without teeth.

Dear Christine, thanks for your good wishes. I have just now found another loose tooth, so you may be right. To be honest I would rather have them all removed and have dentures put in at least I would not be embarrassed to smile. LOL. No one has suggested HBO to me. I duid not even know what it was until I saw it on this site.

Thanx

Margie

My teethe had started to break off, fillings fall out and teeth come loose before I was diagnosed. After I had the tongue surgery and neck dissection, it was decided to remove my teeth so as top prevent infection and and more problems. This had to be done before rads and chemo and then for rad seed imp[lants in my tongue. This was all done beginning the end of Jan 2008. The 29th of Feb. ,LOL that is an easy date to remember, is the day they did implants. I asked the Dr after about the time line for dentures and from what I can understand, there will be no implants unless I just go get them and when I visit the Drs, take them out. At least they might make me feel better knowing I can smile and it not look like a tunnel in my mouth, waitin g for a train to come out or a Semi.

Geez , again, not meaning implnts but dentures for the end of that post. Forgive my mind. It hasn't had it's 1st caffiene yet.

Hi Margie

HBO Treatments are definitely worth looking into if you are having problems with your teeth due to radiotherapy. Most surgeons and dentists who treat cancer patients will highly recommend them.

I'm not sure exactly where you are located in Brisbane but they have a HBO Chamber in Greenslopes and also at the Wesley Hospital in Sandford.

If those locations aren't suitable it would be worth contacting the Wesley Hospital and they would be able to provide details of other hospitals that have HBO treatments.

If you get a referral from your surgeon or medical practictioner the cost will be covered by medicare at most hospitals. My private insurance covered all of my HBO treatments.

Hope this helps.

Karen

Many thanks Karen, I am in Salisbury on the south side and had all my treatment at the PA Hospital. I know the Greenslopes Hospital. It is just a matter of me getting off my butt and stop being so scared of seeing a dentist.

Hi Jim, I did not have any problems at all with my teeth pre cancer, they were white and straight and strong, I only had four removed for radiation now I think I wish I had had the lot out, as I would not be having this problem now.

Margie, did you look into HBO yet? Its something that will take a while to set up and then get the teeth done then more HBOs. Timing is important so make sure you check out HBO before you find the dentist. It will take arouond 2 months for the whole porcess. If your teeth are loose and bothering you, remember its a long process before they will be taken out.

My doc's are making me wait a minimum of 6 months before I can get fitted for dentures. Then a few more weeks til I finally can get them. Im hoping to have the dentures early next year at the latest.

Are you able to eat ok? I could barely eat due to the loose teeth. Hope yours arent that bad yet.

Christine, I asked my Oncologist about dentures, His answser wa, we'll disgus it at the next appty in 3 months LOL You might have to pt the steraks in the freezer for awhile longer. LOL Or else we'll buy fresh ones. I tried the surgeon today about teeth LOL he just laughed and said y ou just don't give up do you. They gave me Lyrica for my pain to try. So far it is junk ..I was told it would take a few days before it takes affect tho.

Christine, I will ask my docs on my next visit re HBO, it may help to save my teeth, but I doubt it after what my GP inferred ib my last visit. I have not been able to eat properly since my surgery and this got worse are radiation and now getting worse again from the loose and aching teeth, I am only having soups and creamy stuff. Because of my teeth but mainly because I have a lot of tissue damage and find it very difficult to swallow. They want my to have my throat stretched. Another question I have is that do any of you still get days where you are sick the same as with the chemo sickness. It happens to me once or twice a month. Plust I have the cataract problem, but as you all say Radiation is the gift that just keeps on giving.

Margie, how long ago did you have your treatments? I was sick like that for several months after I finished, only for a few hours or a day here and there. It may be due to your nutrition. If you arent properly getting a balanced diet, then your body cant fight off anything and becomes weak.

Specifically ask about what effect HBO will have on your vision. It can cause changes.

Margie,

Can you add dates to your signature so we can tell what your timelines are, for instance dx date, treatment dates, etc. (just look at Christine's or my signature) ?? That would help so much to get good answers to your questions.

Deb

Margie, the Drts made my decision for me about the teeth. They even made the appt. I had them out the 17th of Jan 2008 and began radiation the 21st or 22nd of Jan. THey hit me heavy with everything to be aggressive. I miss my teeth LOL I wonder if I will still like real food.

Hi all, My teeth were pretty good before treatment but about a year afterwards, one day a tooth just broke off. That was the beginning. I'm now several teeth lighter, with one permanet bridge and one partial. I have three dentists, a cancer dentist, the root canal dentist and an oral surgeon. They advise me that one day they will all be gone (the teeth, not the dentist, lol) but we want to keep them as long as we can because they say I won't be able to wear dentures due to the lack of saliva and will need implants. Being el cheapo and not wanting to spend the money on implants plus vain enough to not want to run around without teeth, I'm doing everything I can to keep them as long as I can. I'm proud to say I still have sixteen and wonder why I get charged the same price for a cleaning as the guy with 32. What's with that?? Anyway, getting to my question.....I've spoken with the HBO guys and one guy actually told me that it would greatly improve my saliva. Is that true?

I didnt notice any changes in my saliva functioning.

Cup,

Good question and I would keep pressing for the "by tooth" charge. I like your thinking and I agree it should take 1/2 the time and materials so why not 1/2 the "normal" charge?

I started using the Fluoride 1 month before Tx and I still am using it every nite and my dentist says I should for the rest of my life just to be on the safe side.

I didn't notice any change either, and stil have no saliva. Must be the Mojave in there, I'll look in the morning when I brush my mouth with Biotene. Heck, I can look tonite when I brush up on things.

While I am still in radiation treatment for 3 weeks, I have been wearing my upper denture quite easily and plan to have a new lower denture made after treatment. Is is necessary to see a specialist or just a normal dentist?

An oral cancer patient should see a dentist who is very familiar with seeing patients who have had oral cancer. There are specialists available, I think they are called prostiodontists but not sure. After radiation your mouth is different and needs special attention when having anything done. Best of luck with yoru treatments.

Hi Christine,

Close, it's "PROSTHODONTIST"

Jerry

Ok Deb, sorry about that.