Cryonics, euthanasia, and the doctrine of double effect

Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine

Review

Gabriel Andrade¹  Maria Campo Redondo² 

[1] Ajman University, Ajman, UAE;United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, UAE;

关键词: Cryonics;    Euthanasia;    Double effect;    Death;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s13010-023-00137-5

 received in 2022-07-20, accepted in 2023-06-15,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

In 1989, Thomas Donaldson requested the California courts to allow physicians to hasten his death. Donaldson had been diagnosed with brain cancer, and he desired to die in order to cryonically preserve his brain, so as to stop its further deterioration. This case elicits an important question: is this a case of euthanasia? In this article, we examine the traditional criteria of death, and contrast it with the information-theoretic criterion. If this criterion is accepted, we posit that Donaldson’s case would have been cryocide, but not euthanasia. We then examine if cryocide is an ethically feasible alternative to euthanasia. To do so, we rely on the ethical doctrine of double effect.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2023