More drama on the dental front

Another great Health Union illustration

Of all my posts that Health Union has shared on its Bloodcancer.com facebook page, so far the one on Chemo and Teeth, Not a Pretty Picture, Part 1, has garnered the most reaction. (I had to write it in two parts because there was so much to say.)

Readers said they could relate to losing teeth and spending money. Clearly I am not alone.

I started out by expressing my dread when a tooth chipped not long ago. I wrote,

I don’t have much dental real estate to spare. I have lost 12 teeth, one by one or two at a time. It’s possible that my dentist might be able to repair the tooth. But the teeth I lost were so fragile they could not be repaired when they became decayed and either cracked, chipped or even crumbled. When I felt that I was chewing on something that should not be there, and when I spit the tiny piece of tooth into my hand, I thought, “Oh no, not again.”

I ended up losing the tooth and needing another bridge.

I don't have dental insurance. The plan available to me was terrible. In general, dental insurance stinks.

I explained, "Chemotherapy causes dry mouth, which is bad for dental health since saliva helps prevent tooth decay."

Also, a compromised immune system during chemotherapy opens the door for bacteria to have a field day on your teeth.

After I wrote the above part of this post, I was eating a salad and felt something sharp in my mouth. I spit the jagged piece out. It looked like a piece of a tooth. But I couldn't figure out where it came from. I went to look in the mirror. It looked like I had a piece of food lodged between my two front teeth. I looked closer. What I thought was food was actually a HOLE where part of my tooth had been. I'm afraid I'm going to lose the tooth. It is in the worst place.

This happened yesterday. I got a dentist for two days later. Today I called to see if they had a cancellation. I had a toothache. They couldn't fit me in. I'm going tomorrow.

Did I attract some malevolent toothy force by writing about my teeth???


Today I forgot my troubles during some good doubles at the Bay Road Tennis Club.

Somehow or other, though, I whacked my left arm with my racquet.  Must have been a misguided follow through.

A big purple bruise appeared almost immediately. Either I'm very strong or I have very thin skin. At least my partner and I won 6-0. The other two wanted a (fun) grudge match. We ran out of time at 4-4. I didn't want to go out in the pouring rain, so I sat around for a while and watched a Pickleball game.

A little more dental drama

Well, folks, I might be getting near the point when I pop my teeth out before bed.

It wouldn't actually be teeth. It would be just one tooth, but it sounded more dramatic the first way.

I got worried on Friday when a piece of an upper tooth chipped off when I was eating a soft Cliff Bar. It wasn't even an almond or a Tootsie Roll, two of the previous culprits.

The major culprit of course is chemotherapy and how it suppresses the immune system. Chemotherapy causes dry mouth, which in addition to feeling bad, is also bad for dental health, since saliva helps prevent tooth decay. Chemotherapy also disrupts the balance between the beneficial and harmful bacteria in the mouth.

Without chemotherapy, of course, I wouldn't be here to write about this.

My teeth have been pretty calm lately. This after losing 12 teeth over the course of my treatment. Dr. Debian has been able to repair the remaining teeth that shed little pieces or pieces of fillings. He was on vacation this week. So yesterday I saw a different dentist at one of my homes away from home, Holyoke Dental Associates. (The other being Dana-Farber.)

After looking at the X-rays and checking the chipped tooth, Dr. Griffin looked at me solemnly.

He said the tooth was infected (in other words, a dental abscess) and in "normal" situations could be saved with a root canal and a crown. But he did not think there was enough left of the tooth for it to hold a crown.

He thinks it should probably be pulled. But he is deferring to Dr. Debian, who is returning next week. I have an appointment for Tuesday.

Say it is pulled. I then have two options.

I can go the route that I did when filling the gap on the upper left side: getting a permanent bridge (not paid for by insurance).

Or he said I could get a denture, which is covered.

I asked, "You mean the kind you pop out at night? "

"Yes, that's right," he said.

Not a good visual.

In the meantime, he gave me a "z-pack," or Azithromycin. The tooth hurt but started to feel better pretty quickly.

I won't be happy if I find out on Tuesday that I need tooth number 13 pulled.

But it could be worse.