Chew on This

I have the worst teeth on the planet.  I've been fortunate to have pretty darn good dental care all of my life though, which is probably why I have any teeth at all.

Dr. McCann

I grew up in a small town in West Virginia.  One of my dad's best friends was the town dentist, Dr McCann.  His daughter was my age and we were great friends.  I'm not sure I was a good influence on her, but we're friends to this day so I guess we did ok!  My mom and her mom were also quite good friends, so it was really like a blended family sometimes.  I remember the layout of their home, the sound of Dr McCann's voice, and the taste of the spaghetti mom Lois made.

When I married and moved to NC, I was a Marine Corps wife so I still had dental care.  When I divorced, the medical plan on welfare covered dental as well.  By all rights, I should have had perfect teeth.  My parents had even paid for braces, so they were straight.   Yet it was a constant battle.  I almost always had at least a small cavity.  I wasn't a perfect brush-er, but I was better than most, most of the time.  There has only been maybe three years of my life that I haven't had good dental care.

My husband and I met online in 1999.  He lived in Toronto, Ontario and I lived in Ravenswood, West Virginia.  After a few months, we decided to try dating, and he made plans to visit in person.  Then I broke my front tooth.  Fortunately, Dr McCann was still practicing and he made a makeshift, temporary tooth bonded to my existing broken tooth that looked amazing.  It was intended to just get me through the next couple of weeks.  He either did it free or my dad paid for it; I'm uncertain which but grateful either way. He was an outstanding dentist-graduated from West Virginia University's first dental program in 1961 after completing his undergraduate degree in under two years.  He was a full fledged dentist just six years after his high school graduation, and the youngest licensed dentist to practice in WV. 

A year later I moved to Toronto and we married. Doug's work insurance covered dental care, which was good because I needed a root canal about six months after I moved there-and I was eight months pregnant.  Our dentist was amazing-Dr Alison Strong.  She took care of me, my husband, and eventually our son with amazing tenderness, which was something I never dreamed could happen at a dentist.  She was also the only female dentist I've ever had, so maybe that played a part.

Dr Alison Strong

I learned a great deal from Dr. Strong.  She told me about a cavities.   It's related to sugar and to the shape of your teeth and the amount of saliva you have.  Dr. Strong introduced me-and two of my kids-to sealants.  These cut down my dental trauma quite a lot, but it isn't cure-all.
condition where the bacteria in a mouth constantly chews away at the teeth, makes gums tender, and basically causes havoc.  There was nothing that could be done about this-some people just have the bacteria or are susceptible to it.  There's a genetic component, and it leaves some people more prone to decay.

One thing she and I both were amazed with is that the temporary filling-esque tooth recreation that Dr. McCann did in 1999 lasted many more years without signs of weakening.  She was a firm believe if "if it works, leave it alone".  We added a bacterial rinse to my brushing routine and I limped along with one or two cavities a year for well over a decade.

Dr. Strong retired last year.  It was sudden, but I should have seen it coming.  Her kids were grown and gone, she loved to travel, and I'd been her patient for 18 years so it was probably time.  I have no idea how long she had been in practice before I found her.  We were close in age though, and it never occurred to me that was "retirement age".  Technically it wasn't-we were both in our mid-fifties, but I'm very glad she was able to retire young enough to enjoy life.

After I started chemotherapy for lymphoma in 2016, my dental situation worsened exponentially.  It was one of the byproducts of the harsh treatment.  Chemotherapy and radiation therapies slow or stop the growth of new cells. It may cause changes in the lining of the mouth and the salivary glands, which make saliva. This can upset the healthy balance of bacteria. These changes may lead to mouth sores, infections, and tooth decay.  Since I was already struggling to prevent decay, this was a disaster.  I started losing teeth left, right, and center.

First we tried a bridge and that was great for awhile.  After two years post-chemo I had completely lost my bottom teeth and most of my uppers.  Transitions to dentures was partially successful but not without some challenges.  I tried implants (at an out of pocket cost of thousands of dollars) but my body rejected them and they fell out.  Twice.  At the time, the technology was fairly new and the implant process meant having the metal posts pounded into the bone of my lower jaw.  After the second round, I cried uncle and refused to go through it again.  This was all prior to my chemotherapy, so in retrospect they probably would have come out eventually anyway.  After chemo, it was the top teeth that suffered.  By the first anniversary of my cancer diagnosis I was down to only four teeth.

Dr. Strong fashioned an upper plate that incorporated my remaining teeth and anchored the denture quite well.  It was fairly easy to get used to the upper plate, but I to this day can't stand the lower one.  It feels huge in my mouth and even with the paste doesn't stay put.  I have a lower denture, but I never wear it.  My days of steak or salad are over.

Dr. Mark Cohen

After her retirement, I transferred to another dentist in her group.  Dr. Cohen is much closer to where I live and has a terrific office and staff.  There's also the added bonus of the Starbucks next door, which often proves to be incentive to actually go in.  He's a  little brusque and I'm not crazy about his rough hygienist, but it was overall not so bad.   He also told me I needed two root canals on the remaining three teeth.  My dental insurance was almost used up for this year, so we put it off until after January 1, 2020 when I'd have another $!500 to work with.

This was not a good idea, apparently. About six months ago I lost another of my four remaining teeth and he was able to get a replacement into my upper denture in less than 24 hours. 

Last night, while sucking on a Malted Milk Ball, I lost  the other root-compromised tooth.  The good news is I no longer need root canals.  The bad news is, both are broken at the gum line and will have to be dealt with.  Another one is decaying really fast, so I'm certain it's going to go before February or March, even with top notch care.  I have a call in to Dr Cohen about a temporary fix for this new loss and we'll have to discuss going full upper denture I think, because I soon will have only one tooth.

Ironically, it's the one Dr. McCann fixed twenty years ago.  His makeshift solution has held without fail-or surrounding cavities-for a very long time.

Post Script:  In researching this post, I discovered that Dr. McCann served two years in the army after college.  Neither he nor my dad ever mentioned that and it gives me new respect for his memory.   He died in 2016, just a couple months before my lymphoma diagnosis.  His obituary also said he was a Kentucky Colonel, which is truly remarkable.  He was no saint though-but that's not my story to tell.