Abstract
Purpose: Since sustained cough causes great distress to cancer patients, it is important to palliate this symptom. Here, we report a case of intractable cough that could not be controlled by morphine but was successfully managed using continuous infusion of lidocaine for 1 year. Case: A female patient suffered from breast cancer in her fifties. Its lung metastasis invaded endobronchial space, causing frequent and sustained coughing. Further, coughing was often induced by her body motion, hampering the patient's quality of life. Morphine hydrochloride up to a dose of 480mg/day was ineffective in alleviating this symptom. Therefore, we started lidocaine administration via continuous infusion at a dose of 480mg/day. From the day administered, both frequency and duration of her coughing bouts were markedly reduced. Although its dose was increased to 960mg/day because of aggravated coughing in the course of her disease, the symptom was successively managed for 1 year with no side effects. Conclusion: Continuous and long-term infusion of lidocaine could be an alternative treatment for morphine-ineffective intractable cough. Palliat Care Res 2008;3(1):305-307
