Saying no to medical technology

A cardinal principle of contemporary medical ethics is that patients have the right to make this type of decision, and that physicians are obligated to follow their wishes.
To disregard a patient's preferences once he loses the ability to make decisions - as occurred when DeBakey's wife reportedly stormed into a late-night hospital ethics committee meeting and demanded that the surgery take place - violates the hard-won respect for patients' autonomy gained over the past 20 years.

 
Much of the commentary about the case has centered on whether a patient's wishes can be overridden, even by loving family members. What has largely been left out of the discussion is whether it is ever appropriate to perform invasive, dangerous, and expensive surgery on 97-year-olds - even if they want it.