EDITORIALS Standard Consultations Are Not Enough to Ensure Decision Quality Regarding Preference-Sensitive Options

Widespread variation in medical practices and outcomes in seemingly similar populations has raised serious concerns about the quality of health care (1). Well-documented variations in outcomes can be explained partly by failures to apply best prac-tices consistently in delivering care known to be effective (1,2). Equally important, however, are variations in rates of specific surgical or medical interventions in seemingly similar popula-tions that reflect inadequate appreciation for the importance of individual patients ’ well-informed preferences for care and sub-sequent health outcomes (3,4). Efforts to improve patient-centered decision quality are especially critical to ensuring qual-ity cancer care (5). Making a good decision about cancer treatment is a complex and difficult task. It requires a certain emotional readiness, in-formation about options and uncertain outcomes, clarity abou