Dr. Benedetti's current research focuses on utilizing combined expertise in bioethics and pediatric oncology to advance clinical research in pediatric oncology and bioethics.

In bioethics, I have worked to advance understanding of situations where patients and families refuse or abandon childhood cancer treatment. My team conducted qualitative interviews with pediatric oncologists about experiences with these cases, a project that has led to multiple first author publications that describe a taxonomy of treatment refusal, non-adherence and abandonment (TRNA) (Benedetti et al, Frontiers in Pediatrics, 2023, PMID: 36699305), and report a series of cases where pediatric oncologists successfully overcame refusal without legal intervention, leading to the families’ voluntary acceptance of recommended treatment (Benedetti et al, Pediatric Blood & Cancer, 2023, PMID: 37638811). I have recently begun a collaboration with another leading bioethicist in pediatric oncology to expand the analyses, and we currently have one manuscript under review, and another in draft format. The overall goal of this research is to understand how often patients and families refuse or abandon curative treatment, and to develop evidence-based interventions to support oncologists and families as they navigate these conflicts with the mutual goal of maximizing the chances of curing the child’s cancer.