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    Withdrawing life-sustaining treatment (LST) is debated as killing. This paper argues that even if LST withdrawal is an act, it can be classified as letting die, not killing, in medical ethics.

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    Area of Science:

    • Medical Ethics
    • Philosophy of Medicine

    Background:

    • The traditional view distinguishes acts from omissions in medical ethics.
    • A recent prominent view in medical ethics posits that withdrawing life-sustaining treatment (LST) constitutes an act of killing.
    • This view challenges the traditional distinction between acts and omissions regarding LST withdrawal.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To analyze the ethical classification of withdrawing life-sustaining treatment (LST).
    • To examine the argument that LST withdrawal is an act of killing.
    • To propose an alternative classification of LST withdrawal as 'letting die' rather than 'killing'.

    Main Methods:

    • Philosophical analysis of ethical concepts: act, omission, killing, and letting die.
    • Tracing the origins of the view that LST withdrawal is killing.
    • Developing a conceptual framework to distinguish between killing and letting die, even when acts are involved.

    Main Results:

    • The traditional claim that withdrawing LST is an omission is not as problematic as suggested by recent views.
    • Even if withdrawing LST is classified as an act, it can still be ethically categorized as letting die.
    • The distinction between acts and omissions does not preclude an act from resulting in letting die.

    Conclusions:

    • Withdrawing life-sustaining treatment (LST) can be ethically classified as letting die, even if performed through an act.
    • This classification offers a nuanced perspective in medical ethics, distinct from the 'killing' paradigm.
    • The paper provides a framework for understanding LST withdrawal that respects both ethical distinctions and clinical realities.