An elderly patient has recently been diagnosed with cancer. You, a doctor, explain to her the next steps in treatment. She denies treatment, after telling you her husband died of cancer, even after chemotherapy. What do you do now?

As a doctor, you are responsible for outlining the different treatment plans for the patient and the relative risks associated with them. However, in all instances of ethics, the easiest and most logical approach is applying the 4 pillars of medical ethics: beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy and justice. In this instance, it is clear that the most prominent one is autonomy - meaning that it is always completely up to the patient what they do with their health next; this includes accepting or rejecting treatment. The point of paramount importance in medicine, is patient-centred care. This means everything you do is for the patient's well-being. Your role is to work with the patient to find the best treatment plan for them, listening to them and allowing them to voice their thoughts, and give them your professional opinion on what is best for them - this comes under the justice pillar of medical ethics, as well as beneficence (doing good). All of this is the ideal approach for a scenario like this.