Selection of letters to be published is the decision of the editor. For acceptance, letters must be signed. A letter can appear anonymously if requested by the author. All letters are subject to editing. A letter that questions, criticizes, or responds to a previously published Clinical Journal of...

The focus of palliative care is to relieve human suffering; however, about 90% of patients with advanced cancer will experience severe pain. Intolerable human suffering may be defined in the healthcare setting as symptoms that cannot be tolerated or endured for any length of time. If the patient is...

This article explores barriers to informed decision making in health care, and it proposes palliative care as one means of responding to the challenge of a widespread lack of autonomy in decision making. Through an exploration of research in the fields of autonomy and palliative care, the...