Bioethical Dilemmas of Modern Medicine Through the Lens of Existentialism

Abstract

The aim of this study is to provide a comprehensive analysis of contemporary medical bioethical dilemmas through the lens of existentialist philosophy, focusing on the psychological, moral, and anthropological dimensions that are not fully addressed by conventional normative approaches. The article argues for supplementing legal and technological models of bioethics with an existential dimension, enabling a deeper interpretation of the inner experiences of both patients and healthcare professionals in situations of illness, suffering, uncertainty, and proximity to death.

The research methodology is based on an interdisciplinary approach, combining philosophical-existential analysis, a comparative review of contemporary bioethical concepts, interpretation of legal and regulatory sources, and thematic systematization of current scientific publications in the field of biomedical technologies. The application of hermeneutic and phenomenological analysis allowed the identification of meaningful structures in existential experiences that underlie moral decision-making in clinical practice.

The results demonstrate that integrating bioethics into legal discourse and technological practice does not fully account for the richness of human experience, particularly phenomena such as existential anxiety, fear, loss of meaning, identity crises, and moral vulnerability. The study establishes that existentialist concepts developed by M. Heidegger, J.-P. Sartre, A. Camus, and V. Frankl provide an effective theoretical framework for understanding moral contradictions in reproductive medicine, genetic technologies, transplantation, cyborgization, and life-sustaining procedures. It is shown that contemporary biomedical interventions alter the physician–patient relationship, creating the risk of depersonalization, reducing patients to objects of medical procedures, and weakening the humanistic foundations of medicine. The paper also highlights underexplored aspects, including the existential experience of patients in terminal conditions, moral conflicts faced by healthcare professionals in high-tech environments, and the impact of innovations on autonomy and moral authenticity.

The conclusions emphasize that the effective development of modern bioethics requires the systematic integration of an existential approach into medical education, clinical practice, and public health policy. Addressing issues such as mortality, freedom of choice, fear, responsibility, authenticity, and the meaning of life in professional training will ensure a more sensitive, humanistically oriented, and phenomenologically grounded resolution of bioethical dilemmas in contemporary medicine.