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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Can Morphine With Hypopharyngeal Carcinoma Cause Sudden Death?

My boyfriend was diagnosed with Left Hypopharyngeal carcinoma two years ago. He went through surgery, two rounds of radiation, and two rounds of chemotherapy. January 23rd, he was sent home with hospice, he died February 16th. Did it grow that fast or was it the morphine that ultimately killed him.
posted on Thu, 13 Mar 2014
Twitter Mon, 15 Jun 2015 Answered on
Twitter Mon, 15 Jun 2015 Last reviewed on
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Radiologist,  's  Response
Hi,
Thanks for writing in.

Sorry to hear about the death of your loved one. It is possible that he had stage 4 cancer of hypopharynx. This is a delicate condition and usually the patient is unable to maintain a good general health condition. Since they had released him from the hospital, nothing much might have been possible from treatment point of view.

Hospice referral is for those cases who can be made to stay comfortable with opioid pain relievers like morphine. The goal is to give them peace and comfort. Morphine will not have caused any significant event resulting in death of the patient. Please do not worry.
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Can Morphine With Hypopharyngeal Carcinoma Cause Sudden Death?

Hi, Thanks for writing in. Sorry to hear about the death of your loved one. It is possible that he had stage 4 cancer of hypopharynx. This is a delicate condition and usually the patient is unable to maintain a good general health condition. Since they had released him from the hospital, nothing much might have been possible from treatment point of view. Hospice referral is for those cases who can be made to stay comfortable with opioid pain relievers like morphine. The goal is to give them peace and comfort. Morphine will not have caused any significant event resulting in death of the patient. Please do not worry.