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Numbness of the lip and chin after jaw surgery | CION Cancer Clinics
Lip and chin numbness after a mandibulectomy is often permanent when the removed section of jawbone carried the nerve, and often improves slowly when the nerve was only stretched. Your operation note usually says which. This page explains why the lip goes numb, how the feeling tends to change over the following months, how to avoid burns and bites, and what to ask your surgeon. CION Cancer Clinics’ surgical oncologists in Hyderabad can talk this through with you.
MI
Medically reviewed by Dr. Mohammed ImaduddinConsultant Surgical Oncologist · MBBS, MS (General Surgery), MCh (Surgical Oncology) · last reviewed September 2026, next review due September 2027
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On this page
- Is lip and chin numbness after a mandibulectomy permanent?
- What happened to the nerve during my operation?
- How does the numbness usually change after surgery?
- What do the nerve words in my report mean?
- How do I stay safe when my lip cannot feel?
- What do families believe about the numbness, and what is true?
- What can this page not tell you?
- Common questions about lip and chin numbness after jaw surgery
The short answer
Is lip and chin numbness after a mandibulectomy permanent?
Sometimes it is, and sometimes it fades. If the piece of jawbone that was removed carried the nerve to your lip, that side of the lower lip and chin will usually stay numb. If the nerve was only stretched or handled, feeling often comes back slowly over many months.
Why the lip goes numb at all
A nerve runs through a small tunnel inside the lower jawbone, under the roots of the teeth. It comes out through a tiny hole near the front of the jaw and gives feeling to the lower lip, the chin and the gum on that side. A mandibulectomy (an operation to remove part of the lower jaw) can cut, stretch or bruise this nerve.
What decides which one happens to you
The main thing is how much bone is removed and where. Removing only the top rim of the jaw can leave the nerve alone. Removing a full section of bone usually takes the nerve with it. If the cancer is growing along the nerve, the surgeon has to remove that nerve to clear the cancer, and feeling cannot be kept.
Your operation note or discharge summary usually says whether the nerve was kept, cut or repaired. Ask your surgeon to show you that line.How the nerve is affected
What happened to the nerve during my operation?
There are four common situations. Each one changes what you can expect afterwards.
A section of bone was removed
In a segmental mandibulectomy a full block of jawbone is taken out. The nerve inside that block is cut, so the lip and chin on that side lose feeling. This numbness is usually lasting.
If the front of the jaw on both sides was removed, both halves of the lip may be numb.Only the rim was removed
In a marginal mandibulectomy the lower edge of the jaw stays, and the nerve often stays with it. Numbness here is more often from bruising or stretching, and feeling can return.
The nerve was repaired
Some surgeons join the cut ends, or bridge the gap with a thin nerve taken from the neck or leg. Some feeling may come back, slowly and often only in part.
Not always possible when
- The cancer involves the nerve
- The gap is too long
The lip moves differently
A drooping corner of the mouth or an uneven smile is a different nerve, the one that moves the lip. It is often affected by surgery in the neck and usually improves over months.
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistOver time
How does the numbness usually change after surgery?
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The first days
Swelling, the breathing tube and pain medicines make it hard to tell what is numb and what is simply sore. Most people cannot judge the numbness properly yet, and that is expected.
-
The first weeks at home
As the swelling settles, the numb area becomes clearer. The lip may feel thick, heavy or rubbery. Some people describe it as the feeling after a dental injection that never wore off.
-
The following months
If the nerve was kept, tingling, pins and needles or brief electric jolts often appear. These can be a sign the nerve is waking up. If the nerve was cut, the numb area may shrink a little at its edges as nearby nerves take over.
-
Around a year on
Whatever feeling has returned by this point is roughly what most people keep, though small changes can continue. Radiotherapy after surgery can slow any recovery.
On your report
What do the nerve words in my report mean?
- Inferior alveolar nerve
- The nerve that runs inside the lower jawbone. It carries feeling from the lower teeth, lip and chin.
- Mental nerve
- The end part of the same nerve, after it leaves the bone near the front of the jaw. "Mental" here means chin, not mind.
- Nerve preserved or sacrificed
- Preserved means it was kept. Sacrificed means it was deliberately removed, usually because it was too close to the cancer.
- Nerve graft
- A short length of a less important nerve used to bridge a gap in a cut nerve.
- Marginal mandibular nerve
- A branch of the face nerve that moves the lower lip. Weakness here changes the smile, not the feeling.
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Day to day
How do I stay safe when my lip cannot feel?
The main risk of a numb lip is injury you do not notice. You cannot feel a burn, a bite or food left on the chin, so you have to check with your eyes and your hands instead.
Eating and drinking
Test hot tea, coffee and soup on the inside of your wrist or with the other side of your lip first. Take small bites and chew slowly, away from the numb side where you can. Many people bite their lip without knowing it in the first months, so check your lip in a mirror after meals.
Drooling and speech
Saliva or a drink can escape from the numb corner without you noticing. Keep a soft handkerchief with you. This often worries people more in company than it needs to, and it usually becomes easier with practice. A speech and swallowing therapist can help with lip control.
Shaving, the sun and the cold
Shave slowly with an electric razor if you can. Use a lip balm, and cover the lip in strong sun or cold wind, because a numb area can be damaged without warning.
A sore on the lip that has not healed within a couple of weeks should be shown to your team, even if it does not hurt.Commonly believed
What do families believe about the numbness, and what is true?
"The numbness means the surgeon made a mistake."
When a full section of jaw is removed, cutting the nerve is usually an expected part of the operation, not an accident. It should have been discussed before consent. If it was not, it is fair to ask your surgeon to explain it now.
"If it is still numb after a few weeks, it will never change."
Nerves recover very slowly. Where the nerve was kept, feeling can keep returning for many months. Only your surgeon, who knows what was done to the nerve, can tell you whether change is still likely.
"Massage oils or vitamin tablets will bring the feeling back."
No oil, tablet or home remedy has been shown to rejoin a cut nerve. Some creams can irritate a fresh scar. Ask your team before putting anything on the wound or starting a new supplement.
"A numb lip means the cancer has come back."
Numbness that began at the time of surgery is almost always from the operation. What does need checking is numbness that appears or spreads later, after it had settled. Tell your team about that at your next visit, or sooner.
Being straight with you
What can this page not tell you?
This page cannot tell you whether your own numbness will last. That depends on exactly what was done to your nerve, which only your operation note and your surgeon can confirm.
If you are still deciding on surgery
Ask whether the nerve is likely to be kept, cut or repaired in your case, and whether a nerve graft is an option. The decision about the operation belongs to you and your treating team.
When to raise it with your team
Mention new or spreading numbness, or burning pain that keeps you awake, at your next review.
Questions we are asked
Common questions about lip and chin numbness after jaw surgery
Will I ever get feeling back in my lip?
If the nerve was kept or only stretched, feeling often returns gradually over many months. If it was cut and not repaired, the numbness usually stays, though the numb patch can shrink a little at the edges. Your operation note tells you which applies, and your surgeon can explain it.
Why does my lip tingle and give small shocks?
Tingling, pins and needles or brief jolts are common while a nerve recovers or settles. They are often a hopeful sign rather than a worrying one. If the feeling turns into burning pain that disturbs sleep or eating, tell your team, because medicines for nerve pain can help.
Can the numbness affect my speech?
The numb lip itself usually has only a small effect on speech. Changes in speech after jaw surgery come more often from the tongue, the reconstruction and swelling. A speech and swallowing therapist can work on both lip control and clarity, so ask to be referred.
Is my tongue numb for the same reason?
No. The tongue has its own nerve, which runs on the inner side of the jaw. It can be affected when the tumour or the operation is close to the floor of the mouth. Numbness of the tongue can also change taste. Your surgeon can tell you whether that nerve was involved.
Does radiotherapy make the numbness worse?
Radiotherapy does not usually cause new lip numbness on its own, but it can slow the recovery of a nerve that was healing. It also makes the skin and lining of the mouth more fragile, so protecting a numb lip from burns and bites matters even more during that time.
Can a nerve graft be done later if it was not done during surgery?
It is occasionally considered, but results are less predictable once time has passed, scar tissue has formed and radiotherapy has been given. It is not suitable for everyone. Ask your surgeon whether it is realistic in your case, and what feeling it might bring back.
My father keeps biting his lip while eating. What can we do?
This is very common early on. Encourage small, soft mouthfuls, slow chewing and eating while sitting upright and not distracted. A mirror at the table helps some people. If a bite wound is not healing, or looks infected, show it to the team rather than treating it at home.
Is a numb chin years later a warning sign?
New numbness that appears long after the area had settled should be checked, because occasionally it is a sign of the cancer returning near the nerve. More often there is another reason. Do not wait for a routine visit months away. Call your team and ask for an earlier review.
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Sources
- NHS — Mouth cancer: treatment
- American Cancer Society — Surgery for oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancers
- Cancer Research UK — Mouth cancer
- Macmillan Cancer Support — Head and neck cancer
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
Keep reading
Related pages
Marginal vs Segmental MandibulectomyWhy the type of bone removal decides whether the nerve can be keptSpeech After Jaw SurgeryWhat changes in speech and how therapy helpsChewing and Biting After Jaw ReconstructionEating safely while the lip and jaw adjustRecovery and Rehabilitation After Jaw SurgeryThe wider recovery, stage by stage
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