Ethics and ethnicity: end-of-life decisions in four ethnic groups of cancer patients.

In the United States, principled based ethics has molded bioethics to a large extent. These ethical principles, autonomy, non-maleficence, beneficence, veracity and fidelity used in clinical ethics have embedded in them values and assumptions. This research examined the end-of-life decisions made by or for patients who are Chinese-Americans, Black-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, and Anglo-Americans. Patients, their family care-givers and their health care professionals were interviewed. These interviews plus observations in the cancer clinic raise questions about these principles and asks whether, in an ethnically diverse culture, we need to reflect on ethical absolutes and ethical relativism.