The term euthanasia is not new to the twentieth century. Even in ancient societies, terminally ill people requested to have their lives ended; though the meaning of euthanasia for them differed from its meaning today. The English word euthanasia is taken from the Greek eu thanatos "good or easy death." However today it is given a different meaning, because of the social and moral issues it touches. In the present day the term euthanasia is associated with the act of mercifully (although some might argue this point) ending the life of a hopelessly suffering patient with his or her consent. ...

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She can no longer sleep in, but has to adhere to a strict routine of checking blood sugar levels, needles, diet and exercise. ... In her nine-month study of terminally ill children, Anthropologist Myra Bluebond-Langner discovered that they knew and understood a great deal more about their disease and medications than what they were told: The children had a great deal of technical information about the drugs used in treatment - the purposes for which the drugs were given, their side effects, when and how the drugs should be given, their efficacy at various points in the illness, and how long...

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