A surgeon’s duty is to identify goals of care, including those about quality of life, from a patient’s perspective and to consider how to achieve them.

No single person should make decisions about for whom or according to which criteria palliative surgery is clinically and ethically appropriate.

Differentiating between best palliative care options and the curative and palliative potential of surgery is key to developing dual intentional clarity.

When surgical intervention is most appropriate, success should be defined by how well a surgical intervention aligns with a patient’s goals.

For some patients whose survival is extended by disease-modifying interventions, little guidance about clinical and ethical complexities exist.

Word usage and intentional clarity will influence how patients feel about that Whipple pancreaticoduodenectomy surgery.

Financial relationships are common, and ethical questions rightly emerge about how conflicts of interest compromise investigators’ approaches to research.

Heightened caution, improved physician and patient communication, and equitable access are key priorities.

Breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma and breast implant illness have prompted recalls of implants.

Lack of training and lack of knowledge can adversely influence a patient’s clinical outcomes.