[The oncologist and his patient].

The motifs of medical practise, in particular by the oncologist and the basic experience of the patient notably the cancer patient are presented. They represent the prerequisite for an individually taylored, solid relationship between physician and patient founding on mutual trust. Medical practise is nowadays founded on a scientific rationale. In contrast to earlier times the ethos of compassion pertains the private sphere. It is the physicians individual choice to proffer the traditional compassion as interest in the fate of an individual patient or not. The fundamental experience of an individual that his destiny lies no longer in his own hands expresses itself in a paradigmatic way by the perception of his illness. The cancer patient experiences--as other patients do--the threats but also his healing as occurrences not caused by him. He therefore does not identify his disease with objective impairments or pathologic findings. On the contrary, he perceives it as a threat to himself, his existence and his personality. The patient experiences his fate, to depend on circumstances and particularly on other individuals, their benevolence, their acceptance, their help. Trust is the basis for relationship between the cancer patient and his physician. Trust is also acceptance of dependence. Dependence is only acceptable if the physician is trustworthy. Trustworthiness cannot be gained by scientific competence alone but requires personal affection by compassion with the patients fate. The physician needs ethical competence to fulfill his task. Information of the patient gains a particular importance in this context. It, as well as the divergent assessment of the disease by patient and physician--the anthropologic difference--and the "equilibrating systems" are exposed.