Cracks on tongue

Dear Southend,

Thank you for getting in touch with us, and welcome to our online community. My name is Annerose I’m one of the Cancer Information Nurses here at the Macmillan Cancer Support line. I can see you have joined some of our breast cancer groups and I hope you will find them supportive.

I am sorry to read about your mouth ulcers, unfortunately this is not an uncommon side effect of cancer treatment.

It is good that you have been given a mouthwash and spoken to your team about it. It is important to keep them up to date with any changes, better or worse, so they can adjust the treatment if necessary.

Most side effects will resolve once treatment has finished and the body had time to recover.

However, it can’t get better until treatment finishes. Therefore, I add some tips and information on mouth problems and cancer treatment, and mouthcare and cancer, which might be useful for you until you can speak to your team and get their advice.

You might find eating more difficult and chewing and swallowing can cause you pain. We do have some information on how to enrich your diet without having to eat more here.

There are several food supplements that you may find helpful, for example Complan^® or Meritene^® drinks. Your dietitian can provide nutritional advice and prescribe supplements if needed. You can buy these from your chemist or supermarket. Your doctor may give you a prescription for some of them. Always talk to your doctor, clinical nurse specialist or dietitian before taking supplements. They can explain which food supplements might be best for you.

I hope this has been helpful, but please don’t hesitate to get back in touch if you need any further information or support.

Best wishes and take care, 

Annerose (Cancer Information Nurse Specialist) 

You can also speak with the Macmillan Support Line team of experts. Phone free on 0808 808 0000 (7 days a week, 8am-8pm) or send us an email. 

Ref/ AM/BG