{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,4]],"date-time":"2026-04-04T05:01:15Z","timestamp":1775278875356,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":34,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]],"date-time":"2026-03-31T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1774915200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Current Oncology"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Introduction: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is one of the most consequential decisions in clinical medicine\u2014a pivotal moment between life and death where science, ethics, and humanity intersect. Although advances in systems of care, technology, and training have refined technique and logistics, outcomes do not consistently result in meaningful, neurologically intact survival. In oncology\u2014where disease trajectories are heterogeneous, treatment burdens substantial, and organ reserve often limited\u2014these tensions are especially pronounced. Methods and approaches: This manuscript examines resuscitation as a medical, ethical, and human process, with explicit focus on patients with cancer. We review contemporary strategies for early recognition of deterioration (MEWS, NEWS, MET activation), team preparedness through Immediate Life Support (ILS), and structured decision-making at the boundaries of resuscitation. We also address communication with patients and families, the legal framework of Do-Not-Resuscitate (DNR) orders, and the distinctions among treatment forgoing, palliative sedation, and euthanasia, emphasising oncology-specific considerations such as metastatic burden, treatment intent (curative vs. palliative), performance status, and organ reserve. Results and discussion: The overall effectiveness of resuscitation remains modest (approximately 5\u201320% survival), highlighting the importance of prevention and early intervention. In cancer care, the limits of resuscitation are both clinical and ethical, requiring proportionality between the likely benefit and the risks of prolonging suffering, careful attention to prognosis and expected neurological outcomes, and rigorous alignment with goals of care. Early and ongoing involvement of palliative services, along with robust long-term care pathways, provides humane, value-concordant alternatives for patients with advanced disease. Psychotherapists and chaplains play integral roles in supporting families and clinical staff. Structured post-event debriefing and system-level safeguards are essential to mitigate burnout and moral distress within oncology teams. Initiating or discontinuing resuscitation in oncology requires expertise, empathy, and moral clarity. Dignity-preserving care depends on aligning interventions with patient values and realistic clinical endpoints. Acceptance of the natural course of dying represents an important component of responsible and patient-centred medical care.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/curroncol33040202","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]],"date-time":"2026-03-31T16:34:08Z","timestamp":1774974848000},"page":"202","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Resuscitation in Oncology: Limits, Ethics, Practice, and Humanity"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"33","author":[{"given":"Lea","family":"Andjelkovi\u0107","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Anesthesiology Intensive Therapy, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Milan","family":"Krnojelac","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Internal Medicine, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Iztok","family":"Poto\u010dnik","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, Institute of Oncology, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"S580","DOI":"10.1161\/CIR.0000000000000899","article-title":"Part 7: Systems of Care: 2020 American Heart Association Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care","volume":"142","author":"Berg","year":"2020","journal-title":"Circulation"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"S366","DOI":"10.1161\/CIR.0000000000000916","article-title":"Part 3: Adult Basic and Advanced Life Support: 2020 American Heart Association Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care","volume":"142","author":"Panchal","year":"2020","journal-title":"Circulation"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e076019","DOI":"10.1136\/bmj-2023-076019","article-title":"American Heart Association\u2019s Get with The Guidelines\u2014Resuscitation Investigators Duration of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Outcomes for Adults with In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: Retrospective Cohort Study","volume":"384","author":"Okubo","year":"2024","journal-title":"BMJ"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"110770","DOI":"10.1016\/j.resuscitation.2025.110770","article-title":"European Resuscitation Council Guidelines 2025 Executive Summary","volume":"215","author":"Greif","year":"2025","journal-title":"Resuscitation"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wechsler, A.H., Sandoval, M., Viets-Upchurch, J., Cruz Carreras, M., Page, V.D., Elsayem, A., Qdaisat, A., and Yeung, S.-C.J. 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