ArticleThe Laryngoscope2026
Choice and Death: Analysis of Medical Assistance in Dying for Head and Neck Cancer in Ontario.
Article in The Laryngoscope, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThere is a paucity of information on the uptake of Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) for patients with head and neck cancer (HNC). Our study reports the prevalence, disease characteristics, and nature of the desire for MAiD in patients with HNC who underwent the process in Ontario. The aim is to better understand this population and identify gaps in our current system of care.
methodsThis is a retrospective cross-sectional analysis for the period June 17, 2016 to December 31, 2022. Data were received from the Office of the Chief Coroner Ontario, Canada.
resultsThree hundred and fifty-six persons received MAiD. The average age was 72.4 years (SD 12.22) with 260 of the patients being men (73.03%). The most common HNC primary tumor site was the oral cavity 109 (30.6%). The most reported reason was inadequate control of symptoms other than pain (79.21%) followed by inadequate pain control or concerns about it (75%). The patient's private residence (55.62%) was the most common setting. Patients were more likely to live in wealthier neighborhoods and in large urban centers. Future prediction of MAiD uptake shows a linear year-by-year increase.
conclusionThe use of MAiD in HNC has been steadily increasing since its legalization and is projected to continue increasing. There is a male predominance that is aligned with the incidence and prevalence of HNC nationally. Overall, MAiD is an increasingly employed choice for HNC patients receiving treatment for disease without curative intent. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4:
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.