• Lars Johan Materstvedt and Georg Bosshard.
• Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Arts, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway. lars.johan.materstvedt@ntnu.no
• Lancet Oncol. 2009 Jun 1; 10 (6): 622-7.

AbstractTerminal sedation continues to fuel debate. When confronted with a patient for whom terminal sedation is considered a possible treatment option, decision making can be difficult. In this paper we focus on the clinical-ethical issues, with an aim to provide clinicians with ways of framing the issue from an ethical point of view. In addition to the clinical-ethical issues, terminal sedation touches upon interesting and complex questions of an essentially philosophical nature. What it means to be a "person" is one such question, and is a topic that is relevant to clinical, daily practice. Accordingly, in the latter part of this paper we draw briefly on selected philosophical positions to elucidate this question. A doctor's belief of what it means to be a "person" might well affect their actions. For example, if a doctor believes terminal sedation involves the destruction of the person, they might not be willing to proceed with it.

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