The document discusses the author's interest in terminal cancer patients and their acceptance of death, which grew from an internship working with cancer patients. The internship allowed the author to see terminal cancer patients from the beginning of their care through hospice. The main goal of the author's work is to establish a bibliographic background for a master's thesis researching whether humans can accept their own death, especially when caused by illness. The author questions if accepting death means accepting loss, limits, and temporality, with recurring thoughts of death during life. They argue true acceptance is a difficult process for modern Western individuals, involving a transformation that allows one to appreciate the present and forget the future, reaching true self-awareness of one's

1. ABSTARCT
The acceptance of death in terminal oncologic patients
My final elaboration was born from personal experience. My interest grew up
last college year when the director of Clinic and Onologic Psychology Unit of
“A.O.U. Città della Salute e della Scienza” of Turin, professor Riccardo Torta,
accepted my internship request. During the 250 curricular hours I took part to
research study and coperated with psychologists’ unit in psychologyc
consulences, not only in the hospital, but also in the Hospice Vittorio Valletta.
It was the best experience to see the terminal oncologic reality since the
beginning of my career. The main goal of this work is to establish a
bibliographic background for a research study for my master degree.
Coming to the focus of my thesis is as follow: can the human being accepts his
own death, above all the illness is the main cause? Accept the death implies the
acceptation of loss, limits and “temporality”. Behind this acceptation there is a
recurring thought pointed towards death during the existence. A sort of “stoic
resignetion”, hardly possible for the Modern Occidental human being.
However it is not impossible to contend with it. I consider worthwhile to talk
about the welcome of illness and death instead of acceptation. A long, hard
way put trough the wringer, trasforming deep inside the individual, making
appreciate the present day, forgetting about what will be. That make possible
the real self awareness, his authentic essence: finite world of infinite
pssibilities, unique and extraordinary scrap of the Universe.