Ulcer - won’t go away!! Mouth cancer?

[kittenface]

Hi there,

I’m a 29 year old female - struggling at the moment. I have been sick for about two weeks with a bad chesty cough, headache and just feeling run down. I have been trying to rest and drink fluids and I stopped exercising, but it’s really lingering.

Worst thing is an ulcer on my inside lip. It’s been there for two weeks now. It started white and now it’s gone clear, it keeps shrinking and almost disappearing, but then popping back up again.

I’ve never had an ulcer last this long and I’m so worried it’s oral cancer. I showed it to my GP and two pharmacists who recommended Bonjela and Iglu and said to up my vitamins - but nothing seems to help.

Has anyone else had anything similar? Could it be related to my chest infection?

Any help would be amazing.

Thanks so much,

xXx Kittenface xXx

[Fishmanpa]

I'm an Head and Neck cancer survivor. That's not cancer.

Positive thoughts

[unsure_about_this]

What is your diet like, have you nicked your mouth. I have a ucler on inside a few times for about 10 days and informed the dentist as it was time for checkup I go eveyr three months, sometimes stress can cause them.

[darkside4k]

If it keeps getting better then popping back up your mouth may be irritating it some and causing it to flare back up.

[DonnaT]

You said that you were feeling low and that you had a bug that’s when your more likely to get ulcers, i had one a few weeks ago I had a nasty cold thing. The ulcer took ages to clear. Have you tried putting salt on it or baking powder??? Only put a tiny bit on the end of your finger and dab it on the ulcer. I will warn you it hurts a lot but I’ve found that it works a treat. Also swish salty warm water around your mouth

[AnxietyGirl30]

The fact it’s going at some times shows it’s trying to heal so maybe there is something you are eating or something touching it that’s annoying it and not allowing it to heal. Defo use the iglu stuff when you are eating because it protects the ulcer from anything getting into it. It worked wonders for me you will see I posted quite recently about an ulcer I was worried about.

[kittenface]

Thank you so much to everyone who replied to this - it really helped.

UPDATE: I went to see my GP and she looked at the ulcer and in my mouth and said it looked completely normal, and was just from being run down and having a coughing virus.

Straight after that, it shrunk again and ALMOST disappeared. Although I could still see a very tiny dot. It stayed like that for a week and I thought I had finally beaten it!

But then - it popped back up on Sunday evening. Same as before, starting clear and then turning white - although it's not as big as it was the first time.

I'm still coughing a bit - do you think it's because i'm still fighting off this virus? I didn't get a lot of sleep over the weekend and worked quite a lot - maybe it's that?

Any advice would be super appreciated so I don't spend another week panicking and constantly prodding it!

xXx Kittenface xXx

[eevee]

Any chance it's not an ulcer but a mucocele? At least I think that's the medical term. I often get little bubbles that would pop and then a while later they would fill up with fluid again. Even after they popped I would still be able to feel the spot with my tongue, and if I check in the mirror I bet I can see it too but I know it'd spook me so I don't.

Anyway if it's an ulcer, I think you still feeling run down can affect your recovery! Maybe try not to prod it so much as it can interfere with the healing.

[ChocolateButton]

Sounds like you are run-down from a virus. There seems to be a lot of colds and stuff going about at the moment that seem like they've gone but then the sore throat and coughs and sniffles start all over again. So it might just be a really stubborn ulcer.

If your doctor has said it looks normal then that's the main thing. Just keep up your strength with good foods and vitamins and see how you go.

[nomorepanic]

cancer doesn't come and go like this so no it isn't cancer

[swajj]

For what’s worth I have been to an oral specialist and she told me that oral cancer looks a certain way. So no doubt your doctor knows what to look for. Perhaps the ulcer is due to a certain type of food you are eating. Often when I eat tomatoes I will get an ulcer.