Hi Butako, 

I'm sorry to hear your tongue biopsy was painful and that you're finding things a little bit tough at the moment. 

[@HWB]‍, [@Vatch]‍ and [@Space_1999]‍ are just a few of the members on the forum that have had a tongue biopsy and now that I've mentioned them in this post they will hopefully stop by when they can to share their advice and experiences with you. 

You can make a new post and ask any other questions you may have in our cancer nurses section of the forum if you would like to chat to them about this as well.

I hope this helps and I wish you all the best with your recovery.

Kind regards, 

Steph, Cancer Chat Moderator

Butako

I had a tongue biopsy after undergoing 6 weeks of Tomotherapy and chemo ... so I was not at my best when I had ..... and it flipping well hurt like hell

it only lasts for about two weeks then then things start to pick up

oral cleanliness it of utmost importance though during this period and as the was not way I could use my normal toothbrush on the side of my mouth that I had had the biopsy ... so I bought I small head toothbrush from boots and slowly worked round the area.

as I was still on my meds I canstantly washed my mouth out with diphlam (antiseptic mouthwash) ... be careful over the counter mouth washes might be a bit too strong, but give it a go, if you can’t get diphlam from you gp

hang in there I feel your pain but it goes soon

shout if you have any questions

vatch

Thanks for your reply, it really means a lot to me to hear others experiences. 

It was an excisional biopsy under GA, I've got six big stitches on the tongue and some in the cheek. It's very frustrating, I'm fed up of eating just soup! 

The pharmacy gave me Oragel containing Benzocaine which I have found good to numb the tongue locally and useful before eating. 

Looking forward to recovery! 

Ru1

i wish I could offer brilliant words of comfort but the best remedy for a tongue biopsy are as follows

1. Time ... it will take about two weeks if you look after your mouth properly for it not to be a problem

2. Oral hygiene.....this is very important and so flipping hard to do....trying to brush your teeth without hitting the part that was biopsies .... yep good luck with that one

3. As for some diphlam from your doctor it’s a stronger mouthwash but not so minty that it hurts

4. If you are struggling with a normal toothbrush try a small headed one, it less invasive

www.dentaldirect.co.uk/cts-interspace-brush.html

Good luck and keep that mouth clean

vatch

I've had one today 3 stitches , my ear and neck seems to the most uncomfortable , but I. Taking plenty of painkillers , they said to,take them regualary x

Hi there,

In a similar situation and would be grateful to know whether any one else had had the same feelings.

I am a Kidney Cancer survivor (5 years), but have just recently had 3 nasty white patches come up on the side of my tongue. Everybody thought it was Thrush as I always get oral thrush whilst on antibiotics but when after treatment it did not go, they decided to refer me to ENT who then decided to perform excision biopsy’s on all patches in theatre.

I was awake, just had a local, it was awful but I got through it ok! Stitches etc and very sore, awful pain. I am 6 days post surgery now and still struggling to talk, and rest my tongue comfortably in my mouth. Stitches dissolved about 3 days after but no bleeding so went with it. I have 2 weeks to wait for my biopsy results which is the worst for me! I appreciate the healing process takes time but I have been salt water mouthwashing and corsodyl throughout the days but now I feel like my teeth and jaw aches... could it be the mouth washing that’s doing it? Teeth, gums, cheeks and jaw just feel wierd and achy like I’ve been biting down hard on something for a long time. Only noticed it yesterday. Anyone had the same feeling pls? Xx 

Hi Sarahvm

I got my tongue biopsy yesterday but I had pain in my ears and face weeks before I got it, I'm a lot better just 24 hour later, my heart goes out to you as I don't feel you should be suffering as much, I have only been using the salt mouth was, but was thinking of using another mouth wash as well so will keep you up to date. So happy you have come through the other side of kidney cancer well done. I was phoned yesterday after my biopsy to go back for a kidney blood test, any idea why? 

Hi Vey,

Thank you for your message, I’m doing a lot better now and get my results today... Fingers and toes crossed it’s not the dreaded C word!

I’m sorry to hear you were poorly but glad your feeling better now. I have no idea why they have requested Kidney tests? I would always ask why! I had a stage 3a tumour in my right Kidney but my bloods and Kidney function tests all came back normal. It wasn’t until they scanned me that they found it. Worryingly, for certain things bloods are totally unreliable. 

Always ask as many questions as you can and be pushy when you need to be, I’ve kearnt that over time.

i hope your results come back okay, I’m sure they will and keep me updated.

sarah xx