Fearing intense pain, woman with terminal cancer asks California to allow her to die

Death-with-Dignity advocate Christy O'Donnell, with daughter Bailey O'Donnell: Cancer has spread to her brain. Reuters

A 46-year-old woman diagnosed with terminal cancer is asking the state of California to allow her to die.

The patient, Christy O'Donnell, recently sued the state of California so that she will be granted a prescription she can take in case she finds the pain from her sickness already unbearable.

Despite her wish to be allowed to die, O'Donnell, a single mother of a 21-year-old daughter, said she is still professing her Christian faith.

"I've been a Christian my whole entire life and I am today. I believe in God, I pray, and I have an entire support system that prays for me," she said in a video released by Compassion and Choices, a group which advocates the right to die.

Last year, O'Donnell was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. She has since tried chemotheraphy treatments, but the cancer spread to her brain.

More aggressive medications are still available for O'Donnell to combat the disease. However, she stated two main reasons for seeking doctor-assisted suicide.

First, she said she is afraid to experience intense pain before dying.

"The most likely way that I'm going to die with the lung cancer is that my left lung will fill with fluid, I'll start drowning in my own fluid," O'Donnell said.

"I spend an inordinate amount of time being afraid of the pain that I'm going to endure. All of that time that my mind spends thinking about that, I am not living," she added.

Second, O'Donnell said she does not want her daughter to see her going through so much pain and suffering.

"My biggest fear about my last moments on earth are that ... I'm going to be in so much physical pain that it's going to make my passing traumatic for me and traumatic for my daughter," she said.

The California Senate recently passed a proposed End of Life Option Act. The Assembly is set to vote on the measure before September.

related articles
Terminally ill should have right to die – new health minister

Terminally ill should have right to die – new health minister

Catholic Church intensifies campaign against assisted dying
Catholic Church intensifies campaign against assisted dying

Catholic Church intensifies campaign against assisted dying

Former Archbishop of Canterbury: \'Why I support assisted suicide\'
Former Archbishop of Canterbury: 'Why I support assisted suicide'

Former Archbishop of Canterbury: 'Why I support assisted suicide'

\'Euthanasia has become fashionable\': Ethics expert on the right to die
'Euthanasia has become fashionable': Ethics expert on the right to die

'Euthanasia has become fashionable': Ethics expert on the right to die

Terminally ill Brittany Maynard completes her bucket list with Grand Canyon visit
Terminally ill Brittany Maynard completes her bucket list with Grand Canyon visit

Terminally ill Brittany Maynard completes her bucket list with Grand Canyon visit

Posthumous footage of right-to-die campaigner Brittany Maynard released
Posthumous footage of right-to-die campaigner Brittany Maynard released

Posthumous footage of right-to-die campaigner Brittany Maynard released

Girl pleading for assisted suicide gets visit from Chilean president
Girl pleading for assisted suicide gets visit from Chilean president

Girl pleading for assisted suicide gets visit from Chilean president

Teen who pled for physician-assisted suicide changes her mind
Teen who pled for physician-assisted suicide changes her mind

Teen who pled for physician-assisted suicide changes her mind

California right-to-die Bill advocated by Brittany Maynard passes first committee
California right-to-die Bill advocated by Brittany Maynard passes first committee

California right-to-die Bill advocated by Brittany Maynard passes first committee

Right to Die? It is always better to care, not to kill
Right to Die? It is always better to care, not to kill

Right to Die? It is always better to care, not to kill

News
The woeful ignorance of Justin Welby - Part Two 
The woeful ignorance of Justin Welby - Part Two 

Polyamory and open marriages are the next frontier for progressives. Yet the Church seems to be sleeping at the wheel.

Christian family expelled from Indian village after forced conversion attempt
Christian family expelled from Indian village after forced conversion attempt

Chhattisgarh is increasingly becoming a concerning place for Christians

Ugandan Christian convert killed by Muslim relatives while praying at home
Ugandan Christian convert killed by Muslim relatives while praying at home

A 37-year-old Christian convert in eastern Uganda was killed by members of his own family on Friday 18 July after they forced their way into his home and found him praying in the name of Jesus, according to local sources.

The Bible and food: why it's so much more than eating
The Bible and food: why it's so much more than eating

Eating - and eating together - is never a side note in the biblical story. It is one of the ways God forms community, renews covenant, and reveals Himself.