Abstract
The concept of palliative care has been well recognized, and emphasizes the importance of physical-psychological-spiritual care for patients in Japan who are in advanced and terminal stages of cancer. Sometimes sedation is performed for intractable symptoms. Patients who had sedation are free from pain and suffering, however there are many ethical issues. In 1997,the Clinical Ethics Committee of Higashi Sapporo Hospital developed Ethical Guidelines for Sedation of patients in terminal stages of cancer, which was based on literature review and experiences in clinical practice in our hospital. Sedation was defined as a medical procedure for relieving patient's distress by reducing the level of consciousness. The Ethical Guidelines include three requirements and eight items for attention.
