Hope and the Limits of Research

The case "Hope and Limits of Research" portraits a very common scenario in current fast-evolving medical field and a possible ethical dilemma : an almost foreseeable future for the end-stage tumor patients and the hope (may actually be an hype) for cutting edge research. Both Susanne and Margaret are end-stage breast cancer patients. Dr.Tetler, their oncologist, treated Susanne and Margaret with current established medical procedures but no favorable outcome. As the principal investigator for a phase II trial for a new chemotherapy agent, Dr.Tetler is responsible for the patients recruitment and evaluation of the effects of the new drug. Two potential candidates for new drug trial possess an ethical challenge due to their social-economical background. Margaret is a fully insured co-worker of Dr.Tetler. Susanne is facing insurance and family problems and may not be able to show up for the new drug evaluation during the trial if she was enrolled. What should be the criteria of patients enrollment for Dr.Tetler? Does an end-stage patient have the overriding right to participate in a research that could potentially offer an cure for the disease?

Needless to say, sciences including medicine always advance themselves through a trial-error-trial process. However, medical science is more complicated due to the involvement of human being. Medical ethical regulations play an indispensible role in medical science i.e. human subjects are not only considered to provide scientific data for a research but also need be treated in a humane and ethical way. In current case, as the principal investigator of a new chemotherapy drug study, Dr.Tetler is obligated to report the research results to pharmaceutical company. He, meanwhile, is also a physician who needs to treat his patients with the most advanced medical procedures that he can deliver. I believe under current circumstance Dr.Tetler should not put patient's social-economical situation into consideration for his subject...