Overview

The announcement of a serious illness such as a malignant brain tumor must respect the fundamentals of "fair, clear and appropriate" information. This moment of illness announcement, which patients apprehend in different ways, is a complex task requiring a communication strategy based on respect for fundamental ethical principles. In our work, we have tried to describe the various psychological and linguistic aspects, as well as the ethical issues arising from the interaction between the neurosurgeon, the patient and the para-medical staff during the announcement of the diagnosis of a malignant brain tumour, through a review of the literature, and thus to propose certain measures aimed at helping this real ordeal to run as smoothly as possible, in order to improve the quality of care for the patients concerned.