canker -- (a fungal disease of woody plants that causes localized damage to the bark)
canker, canker sore -- (an ulceration (especially of the lips or lining of the mouth))
pestilence, canker -- (a pernicious and malign influence that is hard to get rid of; "racism is a pestilence at the heart of the nation"; "according to him, I was the canker in their midst")