The “cultural differences” argument and its misconceptions: the return of medical truth-telling in China

In bioethics and politics today, in the West and China, cultural differences have often been presented as an ethical justification for rejecting those norms perceived as originating in the West and strongly advocated there-such as truth-telling by medical professionals, informed consent, patients’ rights, women’s rights and human rights in general. It has been argued and believed that such values are inapplicable and thus irrelevant to non-Western societies and cultures.