TY - JOUR T1 - Beta-blockers for tenacious saliva: a case report JF - BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care JO - BMJ Support Palliat Care DO - 10.1136/bmjspcare-2022-003615 SP - bmjspcare-2022-003615 AU - Myles J. Woodman AU - Paul Howard Y1 - 2022/03/24 UR - http://spcare.bmj.com/content/early/2022/03/23/bmjspcare-2022-003615.abstract N2 - This case report describes the care of a 75-year-old gentleman with metastatic head and neck cancer who was highly symptomatic with intractable tenacious oropharyngeal secretions. The patient reported subjective benefit from oral atenolol. A literature review was undertaken and identified no previous studies on the use of β-blockers for secretions in malignant disease, although some anecdotal evidence for their use in motor neuron disease. The proposed underlying mechanism is that β1-blockade reduced the protein content of salivary secretions, hence reducing its viscosity. Further studies of both the role of β-adrenoreceptors in the control of secretion viscosity and the potential role of β-blockers in alleviating symptomatic tenacious secretions are warranted. ER -