This is Volume 1 and 2 combined of the PhD Thesis of Dr.Ruth Benjamin which goes deeply into the question of why the cancer patient who has a good chance of survival and even cure will choose to opt out of treatment often with fatal results. This first volume goes into the literature of medical non compliance in general and the efforts that have been made to combat it. The second volume gives details of the research and the subjects, methods and tests used and a Pilot study is presented giving a successful intervention to improve compliance. There is an extensive bibliography