Though there are channels through which terminally ill patients can access some experimental drugs that have not yet received FDA approval for marketing to the public, in general those drugs must already be proven safe and effective.

Existing scientific evidence suggests that HWLs that graphically illustrate the harms of smoking should be used to effectively inform consumers and would-be consumers about these risks, but legal challenges from the tobacco industry have delayed their implementation.

A patient's request or demand for treatment does not obligate a physician to provide the treatment if the physician thinks it will cause more harm than good.

When a seriously ill mature minor and his parent disagree about his receiving an experimental intervention, who should decide what treatment he will receive?

When a seriously ill mature minor and his parent disagree about his receiving an experimental intervention, who should decide what treatment he will receive?

Despite leaps forward in medical technology that have enabled the timely detection and effective treatment of many cancers, members of marginalized racial and ethnic groups and patients without health insurance often do not receive timely and appropriate care.

While next-generation genome sequencing can successfully guide cancer therapy, it can also reveal significant incidental findings that patients, families, and physicians may not be prepared to handle and may not want to know.

One strategy to promote adherence is the use of “care pathways,” effectively roadmaps that seek to standardize cancer treatment on the basis of some agreed-upon set of guidelines within a particular center or group of patients.

From prevention to treatment, patient to doctor, lab bench to Capitol Hill, every component of cancer care brings its own set of promises and dilemmas.

Today's medical students have an important role in ethical care for the dying because their role involves having conversations with patients about their experiences and values.