# The kanker sore from hell! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 26, 2004, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796 "2004-11-26T22:16:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2004, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/1 "2004-11-26T22:16:07Z")
Ugh. I have a monolithic kanker sore. It’s all big and squishy, and owie and it’s inside my bottom lip so my tongue keeps going there and it’s aching and hurting and generally feeling crap. It’s the size of a Patagonian sheep, for cryin’ out loud! BAH! **I WANT SOME SYMPATHY, DAMN IT!** Ahem. Sympathy, SVP. 😃 P.S. Lest anyone is tempted to haul out some real medical complaints, don’t bother - I have a boatload of those as well, that I’m just gonna keep to myself because they’re not as much fun to whine about as my kanker sore. _…whine…whine…whinge…whinge…_ ---
**Author:** ![The\_27th\_Evil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ebca7d/32.png) [@The\_27th\_Evil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_27th_Evil)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/2 "2004-11-27T00:23:03Z")
It’ll burn a bit at first, but the best thing that helped when I got those was swishing some warm salt water around for a minute or so. Doesn’t do a thing for the pain, but it heals a lot faster. My sympathies. After three years of braces in early adolescence I know how those feel. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/3 "2004-11-27T00:31:36Z")
> [@The 27th Evil](#): > > It’ll burn a bit at first, but the best thing that helped when I got those was swishing some warm salt water around for a minute or so. Doesn’t do a thing for the pain, but it heals a lot faster. > > My sympathies. After three years of braces in early adolescence I know how those feel. You know, I havent had a canker sore in dogs years, since I got my braces taken off [well except for whenever i got hit in the face and the inside of my mouth got cut.] what I get is this annoying exterior cold sore dead center of my bottom lip=( but I discovered a tea tree oil lip balm-stick called lip rescue in the healthfood store, and using that instead of generic lip balm keeps it away like a charm.] Maybe they make a tea tree mouth wash, or you could get the tiny bottle of tea tree oil and put a dab of that on the inside of your lip when it flares up? ---
**Author:** ![Ghanima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/4 "2004-11-27T01:41:45Z")
Oh honey. That sucks. I’m sorry. {{{hug}}} If you can stand it, a slice of garlic or a piece of cut onion held on it for a few minutes will help it also. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/5 "2004-11-27T01:52:44Z")
I’m one of those people who gets them all the time(yes, it’s a desperate attempt to get sympathy). Anyway, mix up a very high concentration of salt water(make it cloudy) and swish it around your mouth. Focus it on the sore area. Yes, tears will come out your eyes, but persists. Even pour some salt right on it and let it soak in. Again, painful, but it will quicken the healing some. Don’t put Oragel on it(or any equivalent). It makes the pain go away, but for me, it slows the healing time a ton. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/6 "2004-11-27T01:54:08Z")
I’ve never found any folk remedy to be of any help at all. I have found a way to drastically reduce the number of kankers that I get though. If you get these a lot you should switch to a toothpaste that doesn’t contain sodium laurel sulfate (SLS). SLS is a foaming agent (detergent) that is irritating to the mouth. Studies have shown that changing to an SLS free toothpaste will improve the situation. Rembrandt makes an SLS free toothpaste and there is another one called Biotene. Haj ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/7 "2004-11-27T02:41:28Z")
**alice** , I have felt your pain. A few words of advice: Sauerkraut juice and acidophilus. Use the first as a mouthwash; you don’t need to swallow it and you probably wouldn’t want to anyhow. Use the second in the form of yogurt or a capsule. Heal! Best, **viva** ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/8 "2004-11-27T02:48:26Z")
Do **NOT** use some hairspray and a lighter to make a flame thrower and try to cauterize the sore. Trust me. ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/9 "2004-11-27T04:09:23Z")
Hey, I am SOOO with you. I get them all the time as part of my Behcet’s Sydrome, so they are a part of my life. A couple of weeks ago, I had two on either side of my lower lip the size of dimes. They were groovy, lemme tell ya. My doctor gave me these two suggestions: 1. Combine liquid dephenhydramine (Benadryl) and Maalox. Swish it over your sores. This apparently dries them out. If you get the cherry-flavored Benadryl, it actually doesn’t taste too bad. 2. Numb the thing with Anbesol, then roll a q-tip in salt. Pack the sore in salt for as long as you can stand it. I also have this triamcinolone paste I got from my GP that covers them up when I eat and when I go to bed, so I took a three-pronged approach and I have to say, they dried up in record time with a minimum of pain (except for that salt part-- I didn’t have any Anbesol…) ---
**Author:** ![that\_darn\_cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/59ef9b/32.png) [@that\_darn\_cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/that_darn_cat)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/10 "2004-11-27T04:13:11Z")
The non-SLS toothpaste does seem to help. I’m lucky enough that my years-long fight with them has receded to the occaisonal small one. When it was bad I got a huge one back by my tonsils. Now THAT was some major suck. The Biotene mouthwas is nice too, I use that quite a bit. ---
**Author:** ![rinni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f6c823/32.png) [@rinni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rinni)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/11 "2004-11-27T04:31:08Z")
I am sorry if this counts as a hijack, but I just had my wisdom teeth out and now they’re oozing and the gums are swollen. I suspect infection although I am no doctor. Would any of these remedies perhaps help clear up what I’ve been experiencing? I’ve been using salt… which, back on topic, I have found helpful in dealing with my past mouth maladies! Oh, and: _gives appropriate sympathy_ 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/12 "2004-11-27T04:44:13Z")
I had one over an impacted wisdom tooth. Fun times (courtesy of Tylox) were had by all. My dentist at the time suggested swishing with Listerine. The alcohol burns like a sumbitch, but it keeps the sore clean and dried out, and there is some numbing effect from the alcohol. It seems to help cut healing time by a day or two. Robin ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/13 "2004-11-27T06:25:07Z")
> [@alice\_in\_wonderland](#): > > Ugh. I have a monolithic kanker sore. It’s all big and squishy, and owie and it’s inside my bottom lip so my tongue keeps going there and it’s aching and hurting and generally feeling crap. It’s the size of a Patagonian sheep, for cryin’ out loud! BAH! Oooh, owwww, _poor_ **alice** … ---
**Author:** ![The\_Punkyova](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@The\_Punkyova](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Punkyova)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/14 "2004-11-27T06:52:43Z")
The home remedy that I used to use was alum powder (found in the spice aisle, it’s usually used in pickling). It burned a bit, and made me drool when I applied it, but it did make the healing faster. Then, I happened to have a dentist’s appointment when I had a cancer sore. He put a few drops of something on it, and it was gone in 24 hours. Since then, any time I have one I drop by his office for 2 minutes. No, I have no idea what this stuff is called, but call your dentist and ask if they will do this. I sympathise. Canker sores hurt. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 7:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/15 "2004-11-27T07:09:51Z")
Well, I’ve been putting salt directly on it for the duration of _Behind the Music - Guns N’ Roses_. Now it’s all white and sort of open and disgusting looking. It also hurts like a steaming hot poker in the eye. Ok, well perhaps not quite that much. Anyhow, time for more salt… _…applies salt directly and liberally to kanker sore from hell…_ AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH! ---
**Author:** ![Marlitharn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/779978/32.png) [@Marlitharn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marlitharn)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/16 "2004-11-27T07:41:51Z")
Oooh, you have my sympathy. When I was 13 and 14, I used to get multiple canker sores - every month, when my period started. At one time I counted 6 of them festering away in my mouth. A moody teenager with a painful mouth and cramps; I don’t know what kept my parents from locking me in a trunk. Try putting a cold beer on it. If it doesn’t take the swelling down, well, you’ve still got a cold beer. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/17 "2004-11-27T13:46:08Z")
Alas, poor **alice** I suggest a wet asprin applied d[/SIZE]irectly to the sore for a minute. Not only will it burn it out, but it will also increase your understanding of the concept of PAIN. ---
**Author:** ![Halfling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@Halfling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Halfling)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/18 "2004-11-27T16:34:00Z")
I really sympathise with you Alice; these things sound really painful. Does anyone know if canker sores are the things we call mouth ulcers in the UK? ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/19 "2004-11-27T18:01:06Z")
Canker sores are the white sores inside your mouth that sting like blazes with any kind of citrus juice. Does that sound like the mouth ulcers you’re thinking of? I think I’ve heard them called that, but I’m not sure. I second the vote for non-SLS toothpaste if you are a frequent sufferer. Due to that, I am no longer a frequent sufferer!!! Another major trigger for me is foods containing monosodium glutamate (MSG). This is in way more things than Chinese food. Chinese restaurants at least are aware of the issue, so you can get your food without it. ---
**Author:** ![Tio\_Gringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5e925/32.png) [@Tio\_Gringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tio_Gringo)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2004, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796/20 "2004-11-27T23:32:06Z")
> [@Marlitharn](#): > > Try putting a cold beer on it. If it doesn’t take the swelling down, well, you’ve still got a cold beer. This will now be the de facto medical advice I follow in perpetuity. Thanks, **Marlitharn**. 😃 Oh, and Alice, as a chronic canker sore sufferer, I truly feel your pain. ☹ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-kanker-sore-from-hell/276796.md?page=2)