Promoting palliative care, Opposing euthanasia and assisted suicide

When Ilora Finlay's 84 year old mother, Thais, laid in a hospice suffering from advanced Breast cancer, she was adamant that she wanted to die.
As with many seriously ill people, Thais did not want to be a 'burden' to anyone, or to be 'dependent' on anyone. As a result she refused chemotherapy and longed to die. It was not until talking to a hospital chaplain that she regained her will to live. The law against assisted suicide protected Thais at her most vulnerable state, allowing her to enjoy the time she has left and meet her great-grandson, the highlight of four extra years of life.

Baroness Ilora Finlay of Llandaff, is a Welsh doctor, professor of palliative medicine at Cardiff University School of Medicine, and an Independent Crossbench member of the House of Lords. She is also the immediate past president of the Royal Society of Medicine.

To read more on this story:

• Mum is glad she couldn't end it all
• A gift beyond measure
• Living proof assisted suicide may not be the answer