1. Life-threatening conditions for which curative treatment may be feasible but can fail | Cancer |
| Cardiac anomalies |
| Irreversible organ failure |
2. Conditions that may entail long periods of intensive treatment aimed at prolonging life and allowing participation in normal activities, although premature death is still possible or inevitable | Cystic fibrosis |
| Duchenne muscular dystrophy |
| HIV/AIDS |
3. Progressive conditions without curative treatments, where intervention is exclusively palliative, although it may continue for many years | Batten disease |
| Mucopolysaccharidosis |
| Creutzfelt Jacob disease |
4. Conditions associated with severe neurological disability that are not progressive but can entail weakness and susceptibility to health complications leading to premature death | Brain or spinal cord injuries |