has anyone else had to have their teeth removed during chemo?

qacrose3

hi everyone i am writing with hopes to find a solution to my much needed dilemma. been through 3 years of no teeth from the chemo my first go around . they have gotten so weak they removed them all due to infections so now i am a few years out and on herceptin for life . yes life and with that being said i still cant eat healthy foods that i need to replenish my body. i am on medicaid and a single mom of 2 boys both of my parents passed and my ex husband left me for another woman and then went to prison for 26 years . so i am all alone with little help i get disability but only 350 a month i dont know why and i appealed it but you know that process its a waiting game . my weight is down to barely pushing 90 lbs. i need to eat fresh veggies and fruits and not in juice form kinda over that whole juice thing i want to eat real food maybe go on a date i am single and have been for a over 5 years scared to start working cuz i cant smile . and the 1st thing people think about is she is a skinny drug addict when i never even did drugs before i stay inside and barley enjoy life . i tried to get medicaid to pay for some dentures instead of reconstruction they said dentures is cosmetic . so is a fake breast without a nipple. so my question to you all is has anyone gone through this or if anyone has any ideas on how i can get dentures that wont take an arm and a leg and accepts payments . i cant afford much and no one will work with me . but i wanna live i didnt fight this cancer just to waste away in my bed . please and thank you .

Roxy_89

How much are full dentures going to cost you? What are the prices you have been seeing?

Moderators

Hi Qacrose3-

Have you tried checking with organizations in your area that offer free or low-cost dental care? There are several charitable organizations and social services that may be able to help, depending on where you live. You may also consider reaching out to local dentists to find out if they have programs that offer low-cost care, or would be willing to move forward with care on a payment plan.

The Mods

peaches1

Do you live near a dental school? They all have a clinic that is a third of the price of a regular dentist, and sometimes cheaper. I used the dental school clinic at Northwestern University that is no longer open. They closed their dental school 10 years ago. The thing that is nice about the dental school is that they don't try to tell you that you need all of this work that you don't. It is obvious though that you need dentures. The bad thing about the dental school is that because the students are learning how to do dental work, it can take you a lot longer. Something that a regular dentist might complete in one hour, is going to take three hours for a dental student to complete. The students are closely supervised, and if they have any concerns about doing something they get the professor's opinion. One student was replacing a filling in one of my teeth, and she was concerned that she would take off too much filling, and so she only took off a tiny bit every time. I was in the chair for 3 1/2 hours, and the professor wanted to go home. He finally asked her if my teeth touched, and she said yes, and he told her that I was okay then. The next time I saw her, she would be able to figure out how much more she should remove.

If you are on disability and only receive $350 a month, then I assume you are on SSI and not on SSDI. Maybe you have not paid enough into the system to qualify for SSDI? If you are interested in working again you might sign up with your state rehabilitation office. There might be a chance they could find money for dentures. I've dealt with state rehab before, and in Illinois they are semi awful, and none of the states have a really good rehab program. In Illinois right now the state is broke, and they finally passed their first state budget in over two years. The Governor had never run for public office before, and he wanted to shake things up, and everytime the house tried to come up with a budget, he would veto it. Last week they finally got enough Republicans to switch their vote so they could override the veto..

ChiSandy

Yeah, they finally overrode Gov. Scrooge McDuck’s budget veto. Now my husband has to file a “lapsed appropriation” claim in the Court of Claims (irony of ironies, that’s where I used to be an Asst. A.G.) in order to get Medicaid to reimburse him for patients he treated. Only then can he start taking a paycheck again.

I second Peaches’ recommendation about Dental School clinics. When I was in law school, the U. of Wash. Dental School clinic pulled my remaining wisdom teeth, healed my gums, did my fillings & cleanings and installed three crowns—all of the latter of which I still have 43 years later. And I paid nothing because I had no income and my husband, still in grad school, had only a $300/mo research asst. stipend.

Hopfull2

hi , sorry you have to go through this. Have you tried applying for public cash assistance. If you are on ssi your kids are still eligible for cash assistance.

qacrose3

i do get 200 a month for them but they are growing teenage boys that are home for summer so it goes to the extra food that they eat . i only get 400 in food stamps so 100 a week for growing boys isnt enough . and i dont buy junk food . they get mad at for not buying them . and that 200 tanf i now get has only started a month ago . i was never told that i could get anything for them .

peaches1

Is there a food pantry you can go to to tide you over? I don't know where you live, but I live in Evanston a suburb of Chicago, and we have a wonderful farmer's market, and for people that are on the LINK card, they can shop at the farmer's market. The go to the information table when they walk in and hand them their LINK card, and then somebody takes how ever money they want to spend off of their card. The farmer's market then doubles that amount, and hands you coupons to use. If you say you want $20 taken off your LINK card, they will give you $40 worth of coupons to use at any of the stalls there. The person then hands the farmer one of the coupons when they make a purchase, and the farmer redeems that coupon at the end of market. A few years ago, I was buying some fruit from one of the farmers that I personally know, and while I was visiting with her, somebody came up to Helga if she had any coupons to redeem, and she handed her $150 worth of coupons that were redeemed. One of the hospitals in our town used to fund this program, but they don't anymore, and somebody else must have picked it up.

I am sorry when I mentioned rehab in my earlier post, I meant vocational rehab. You should sign up with them if you are ready to work, and they might be able to find you funding for dentures. They would also help you find a job, and possibly give you funds for job training or computer classes. The problem with most state voc rehab. programs is that they are used to dealing with people with developmental disabilities, and so lots of times they try to get you a job bagging groceries at Safeway even if you have a college degree.

qacrose3

thank you for your response i really didnt have many to talk to but yes i do go to the food banks . a lot happened to me in a short time and while i was recovering from my first go of this devil i enrolled in culinary school and the nutrition program so i could gain employment afterwards and learn the proper foods to eat. the cancer came back in the same spot six months out of treatment so i had to back for more rounds of chemo and more rounds of radiation and another mastectomy and more lymph nodes removed . had to put school on hold for now. so this time i had more down time and i am just now getting my energy back but heres the viscous cycle i dont have teeth to eat the right foods so i am not gaining weight 90 lbs is not pretty on 40 y/o 5 foot woman. and without the right foods i cant seem to pull my energy up so i am hoping i can be a little healthier to work somewhere i am comfortable with . i want to finish school but teeth would be good to eat the food i cook and prepare . the dental clinic here that does discount dentures is in richmond 2 hours from me and i dont have a car . and its a 2 part situation go in for the consult and then the next day for the work and still have to pay something as of right now i cant spare even 50 a month. i pay for rides to and from the store and drs appt our farmers market does take our ebt card for food but its not close to me . i live in the boonies haha not really but nothing in walking distance but 711 and a gas station and taco bell and i never eat taco bell haha . but yes i wanna work bad but i would like to feel comfortable doing it and smile at people . as of now this smile is hideous and i dont very much . i send pictures to my aunt and she always tells me to smile i have to remind her i cant smile or i wont smile i hate looking like capt caveman

wrenn

I personally don't know anyone who has lost their teeth from chemo. It sounds like the suggestions given here haven't been helpful to you so I can't think of anything else. I wish you well though. Cancer is hell. I am sure more people will be along tomorrow with some help.

peaches1

Are you still actively in treatment for breast cancer? If you are you should see if one of the social workers at the hospital can give you some advice.I just reread your initial post, and I noticed that you are on herceptin, and so you must be actively in treatment. I know this might not be feasible, but have you considered moving to a location that is more centrally located? I know I grew up in a rural area, and the closest grocery store was a mile away. Maybe you can contact the American Cancer Society and they can give you some advice on where to get help. Do you have a breast cancer support group in your area? If you do maybe somebody in the group can give you a ride to meetings. Are you involved in a church? Lots of time in small towns, if you are a member of a church, the other members will help you out. Like I said you should also contact your state voc rehab to see if they will help pay for dentures.

MinusTwo

gacrose - you just posted a questions on another thread about "herceptin for life". The ladies on this thread are invested in your back story so it would probably be a good idea to keep posting here so we don't have to start over. As I said on the other thread, please go to 'my profile' and enter your diagnoses & treatments to date and make that information public so we can see it with your posts.

peaches1

Qacrose- Do you live anywhere near an Aldi's? There are a lot of Aldi's stores in the Chicago area, but I know they are not everywhere. I know people who love Aldi's because their prices are low, and you don't have to hit sales at five different stores and cut out lots of coupons to save money. It is kind of one stop shopping. Some people love Walmart too, but I am not a Walmart fan. I hope you are not buying most of your groceries at the 7-11. You don't have a friend or neighbor who can give you a ride to the store for free? If you have a volunteer from the ACS giving you a ride for your herceptin treatments, maybe they can take you to the grocery store on your way home?

ksusan

I am confused about why you needed to have your teeth removed. You seem to be saying that this was because of the chemo, which would be unusual. Do you have another health problem as well? How many teeth? I have a hard time understanding why replacing teeth that were removed for medical reasons would be considered cosmetic if it's enough to interfere with your ability to eat. When you had your teeth removed, what reason was given, and what were you told about what would be done to provide you with dentures?