Department of Oncology-Pathology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Palliat Med. 2012 Jan;26(1):34-42. doi: 10.1177/0269216311404275. Epub 2011 May 4.
Deliberations on euthanasia are mostly theoretical, and often lack first-hand perspectives of the affected persons.
Sixty-six patients suffering from cancer in a palliative phase were interviewed about their perspectives of euthanasia in relation to autonomy. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using qualitative content analysis with no predetermined categories.
The informants expressed different positions on euthanasia, ranging from support to opposition, but the majority were undecided due to the complexity of the problem. The informants' perspectives on euthanasia in relation to autonomy focused on decision making, being affected by (1) power and (2) trust. Legalization of euthanasia was perceived as either (a) increasing patient autonomy by patient empowerment, or (b) decreasing patient autonomy by increasing the medical power of the health care staff, which could be frightening. The informants experienced dependence on others, and expressed various levels of trust in others' intentions, ranging from full trust to complete mistrust.
Dying cancer patients perceive that they cannot feel completely independent, which affects true autonomous decision making. Further, when considering legalization of euthanasia, the perspectives of patients fearing the effects of legalization should also be taken into account, not only those of patients opting for it.
安乐死的讨论大多是理论性的，往往缺乏受影响者的第一手观点。
对 66 名处于姑息阶段的癌症患者进行了采访，询问他们对自主权相关的安乐死的看法。采访内容逐字转录，并使用无预设类别的定性内容分析法进行分析。
受访者对安乐死的立场各不相同，从支持到反对都有，但由于问题的复杂性，大多数人持不确定态度。受访者对自主权相关的安乐死的看法集中在决策上，受到（1）权力和（2）信任的影响。安乐死的合法化被认为要么通过赋予患者权力来增加患者的自主权，要么通过增加医护人员的医疗权力来降低患者的自主权，这可能令人恐惧。受访者感到依赖他人，并对他人的意图表示出不同程度的信任，从完全信任到完全不信任。
临终癌症患者认为他们无法感到完全独立，这影响了真正的自主决策。此外，在考虑安乐死的合法化时，不仅应考虑选择安乐死的患者的观点，还应考虑那些担心合法化影响的患者的观点。
