Not telling the truth: circumstances leading to concealment of diagnosis and prognosis from cancer patients

Corresponding Author

J. SHAHIDI MD

Javad Shahidi, Palliative Care Research, Jewish General Hospital, 3755 Cote Ste. Catherine, H362, Montreal, QC, Canada H3T 1E2 (e-mail: [email protected]). Search for more papers by this author

J. SHAHIDI MD,

Corresponding Author

J. SHAHIDI MD

Javad Shahidi, Palliative Care Research, Jewish General Hospital, 3755 Cote Ste. Catherine, H362, Montreal, QC, Canada H3T 1E2 (e-mail: [email protected]). Search for more papers by this author

First published: 13 August 2010

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2354.2009.01100.x

Citations: 65

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Abstract

SHAHIDI J. (2010) European Journal of Cancer Care19, 589–593

Not telling the truth: circumstances leading to concealment of diagnosis and prognosis from cancer patients

While autonomy has gradually become a key concept in the doctor–patient relationship, truth-telling is far from being the norm in many countries in the world. Despite the general agreement on the benefits of open communication between physicians and cancer patients, there is still strong resistance against disclosure of cancer diagnosis and prognosis in many cultures. Although fear of causing psychological morbidity to patients and their reluctance to find out the truth are two main justifications of non-disclosure attitudes, there are other important contributing factors that need to be further explored and better understood including those related to the relatives, doctors and healthcare systems. Cultural disparities in attitudes towards truth-telling persist; however, these differences should not be used as excuses not to respect the rights and individual preferences of cancer patients by making assumptions based on their age, sex, type of cancer, language and/or cultural background.

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