hi.my dad is 83 years old.suffering from esophagus cancer which has already spread to liver,kidneys ,stomach and lungs.he is having hiccups most of the time,especially after sleeping.is there medicine for it?-is it any dangerous as far as his health is concerned.?
Thanks for your question on Chat Doctor. Esophageal cancer is very difficult to treat and when it spread to lung, liver etc. than the life expectancy is less than 1 year. Hiccup in these patients suggest aspiration into trachea. Due to mass in esophagus and abnormality in peristalsis, food often not travel smoothly on lumen and this causes persistent irritation to larynx and causes cough and hiccups. So better to put nasogastric tube to prevent all these. This tube prevent aspiration and irritation in larynx this minimizes hiccups and coughing.