Continue treatment: 70%
Other: 9%
.
Questions surrounding when to halt aggressive care and to remove life support did not surface frequently in medicine until the 1970s, when new technologies -- from ventilators and dialysis machines, to more powerful antihypotensive agents and antibiotics -- made it possible to prolong the lives of the critically ill as never before. Right-to-die cases that entered the public discourse, such as those of Karen Ann Quinlan (1954-1985) and Nancy Cruzan (1957-1990), resulted as much from improved medical care as from any change in ethical norms.
Clarence's case raises two distinct issues that often arise in contemporary medical ethics: how to weigh "sanctity of life" against "quality of life" and what to do when an incapacitated patient's wishes are unclear and family members cannot agree.