Chocolate as a cough suppressant: rationale and justification for an upcoming clinical trial.

Cough is a troubling symptom for many patients with cancer. Current cough suppressants can cause side effects and, at the same time, might not provide absolute cough palliation. Suprisingly, accumulating evience suggests that dark chocolate can carry antitussive effects. Although mechanisms remain unknown, it is thought that theobromine, a methylxanthine intrinsic to dark chocolate, might potentially suppress cough. To date, clinical trials with dark chocolate have not been undertaken. This article describes an upcoming trial to determine whether dark chocolate might serve as an antitussive in patients with cancer.