Scheduled for a Vermilionectomy for premalignant lip tissue

Hi there. I am new to this forum and just thought I would share my recent experience of having a Vermilionectomy. I had a biopsy on my lower lip at the end of November 2024. I had a lip lesion that wouldn't heal. I was terrified of the procedure but honestly it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I got numbing gel on my lip before the injections (my dentist advised me to ask for it) A 6mm by 8mm [corrected] piece was removed. It took about 20 minutes and was pain free. The pain was minimal after as I kept up with pain relief of both Ibuprofen and Paracetamol every 4 hours. I ate pureed foods for about 5 days after, yes it was uncomfortable. 10 days later my results came back. Actinic Cheilitis with moderate to severe dysplasia. So, pre-cancerous. I was booked in for a Vermilionectomy January 13th 2025. This time I was more than terrified. I shouldn't have been as it again wasn't as bad as I had imagined. I had it done under general Anesthesia. Similar pain and pain relief as before plus some tramadol also for 2 days. I am now still recovering as the area is still healing but doing well, the inside of my lip is still swollen and there is numbness. I am 61, fair haired and freckled and was sunburnt a lot as a child. Hopefully this is helpful to someone who is anxious about this procedure.

Correction: the biopsy was 6mm x 8mm NOT cm

Hi there, I was wondering if anyone else has had the Vermilionectomy recently as I would like to hear about their recovery. I had the procedure performed a month ago and am finding it to be a slow healing process mainly on the inside of my lip. I had the stitches out after 16 days and my lip looks quite good on the outside although it is numb to a degree. It's the inside that is most sensitive. I am still finding eating and talking to be difficult as I can't open my mouth fully and the inside area is sort of hard and swollen. I hear it can take up to 4 months to recover fully but there isn't much information about recovery so I would appreciate to hear of anyone else's recovery. Thanks,
M

Hi @maria61, I’m tagging @marshaj @mizlynnie who are a year or two out from having had a vermilionectomy and can share their experiences.

Maria, I can also edit your post to change cm to mm if you like 🙂

Recovery does take time and anything inside our mouth feels so much larger doesn’t it? Was it recommended to work with a speech pathologist during recovery to help with talking and eating?

I can see the slightest “divot” in the lip but no one else sees it unless I point it out. It was a shave type biopsy with a scalpel. No big deal. My lower lip hasn’t been “right” for years. I have tried every lip product and mask on the market without success. Dermatologist froze it 4 times but it never healed properly, hence the chemo cream.