In 2002, my grandmother passed away from cancer of the kidney's. Between the bi-weekly chemotherapy treatments to the seven operations she had all within two years, she experienced immense pain. I was a witness to this pain. It hurt me inside that there wasn't anything that I could do to help. My grandmother would be in so much pain that she would confide in me and tell me about how she wish she would just die. This wasn't something that I wanted to hear, but, to her it meant the end of the continually pain and suffering that she went through every single day. With this in mind, I have to ask the question, shouldn't people in this type of situation have the right to euthanasia? Isn't our life our choice and quality of life our choice?.
II. Articles.
Article 1.
Summary: The first article I reviewed was against assisted suicide. The article goes on to talk about a man's diagnosis of cancer and his minute three month life expectancy. Sidney Cohen was diagnosed with cancer in November, and by January 1st he described himself as "bed bound by pain and weakness, having been able to drink only water for six weeks . . . desperate, isolated, and frightened" wishing for euthanasia. Instead of going through with the procedure, Sidney goes to Macmillan for help. Macmillan is a hospice service provided to help people that are terminally ill cope with dying easier on them and their families. After deciding to go with hospice care, Sidney has a change of heart and claims now that "his experiences have served to convince him that euthanasia, even if voluntary, is wrong". .
Analysis: I suppose that you could always "what if?" the situation. You can do that with most everything. However, what if Sydney didn't decide on the hospice and he did go with euthanasia as a means of ending his painful existence? It was just by chance that at the last minute, Sydney changed his mind and went with a hospice care that help in the coping and acceptance of his eventual death.
