Everyone has experienced hiccups and is a very small nuisance, which passes after some time usually in a few seconds or minutes. Most people put a stop to hiccups by drinking water or holding their breath. This was not the case with a 26 year old man whose hiccups just would not go away. He used to hiccup about 30 times every minute, for 12 hours in a day. Initially he was treated for heartburn with absolutely no effect. In desperation the person tried all kinds of remedies including acupuncture, yoga, and hypnotherapy with still no respite.

His hellish ordeal attracted the attention of the media and he appeared on television. Eventually a television company flew him to Tokyo where a doctor named Condo was doing research on hiccups for the past 15 years. Dr. Condo took an MRI scan and it revealed a tumor on the brain stem. This small tumor measuring 1.2 cm was causing his nervous system to trigger hiccups. An operation was successful in removing a sixth of the tumor and after three long years the person was eventually freed of hiccups. The operation has left the person with diminished feeling in the left side of the body.

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