BACKGROUND: Medical treatment decisions should be based on the preferences of informed patients or their proxies and on the expected outcomes of treatment. Because seriously ill patients are at risk for cardiac arrest, examination ...

CONTEXT: Previous studies have documented that cancer patients tend to overestimate the probability of long-term survival. If patient preferences about the trade-offs between the risks and benefits associated with alternative ...

A formerly competent person who is unable to speak for herself poses a poignant ethical dilemma for health-care providers. A fundamental principle in these circumstances is to pursue the course of action the patient ...