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Suppose that you alone discover that full anesthetic only makes the user look unconscious and not form memories, but does not prevent him from feeling pain; if someone needs to undergo surgery, there is no way around that pain and suffering.

Should you keep this finding a secret?

ATLief
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  • I voted to close the question as it is very subjective. – Bertrand Wittgenstein's Ghost Dec 16 '18 at 02:52
  • Don't have an answer for you, just more questions:https://philosophy.stackexchange.com/q/55004/33787 and https://philosophy.stackexchange.com/q/55047/33787 – christo183 Dec 16 '18 at 15:03
  • Just one subjective opinion: in Robert Heinlein's books, he invented the "Lethe Field" which prevented you from forming memories of the surgery. It was considered to be the ultimate boon to medical science, because a doctor could interact with a conscious patient, but they never had enough memory to realize they were in pain. So that it at least one individual's opinion on the matter. – Cort Ammon Dec 16 '18 at 20:31
  • Related: Some years ago, scientists published that they'd succeeded in curing alcoholics so that they could drink in moderation. This was blasted by Alcoholics Anonymous as encouraging their members to drink again, in contrast to their policy of complete abstinence. – David Thornley Dec 18 '18 at 17:35
  • I think this question would be a fine time to analyze the various ethical concepts of pain, harm, help, healing, consent, etc. Vote to reopen. – elliot svensson Dec 18 '18 at 21:44
  • This is an ethics question. There is a specific question about a well-described situation. It's no more subjective than lots of questions here. I'm not seeing why it should be closed or put on hold. Voting to reopen. – David Thornley Dec 20 '18 at 19:10

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Yes. The belief in painkillers aids the patients recovery. Placebo effect would encourage people to seek help, when neccessary.

Aceyates
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