title: Mario Monicelli's Grande guerra: the right of living and the choice of dying.
abstract: Monicelli's suicide has reawakened a political and legal dispute about the medical role in end-of-life decisions, allowing us to discuss medical, ethical, legal, religious and political debate in various paradigmatic conscious and unconscious cases of end-of-life decision. We analyse the uncertainty about the 'a priori' choice between different specific legislative systems, highlighting the need for a unifying model, dictated by the existing trust in the critical relationship between patient and doctor, whose primary mission should be not only 'to cure' but also 'to care'.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomical, Histological, Forensic and Orthopaedic Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Matteo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gulino
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Frati
authors.forename: Gianluca Montanari
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Vergallo
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Frati
mesh_terms: D016223:Advance Directives / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D005065:Euthanasia / Q000941:ethics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D006801:Humans; D016224:Living Wills; D009014:Morals; D028701:Patient Rights / Q000941:ethics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations / Q000941:ethics; D011057:Politics; D013405:Suicide / Q000941:ethics; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000941:ethics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence