Soins palliatifs et euthanasie : histoire d'une confusion

As early as the beginning of the 16th century, Thomas More first, then Francis Bacon, endeavoured to make their contemporaries aware of the need to take care of the incurably ill. A careful reading enables us to assert that their written works are the very foundations of the practice of palliative care, taking into account the period when these texts were produced, of course. The use of the word “euthanasia” when referring to a practice similar to palliative care has very likely contributed to confusing people, which is still the case even nowadays.