when my Dad had cancer....going back some years now...
there'd been a story in the paper about some woman who was so riddled with cancer that morphine didn't touch it and she spent her final days screaming in undending agony. I vowed, there and then, that if my Dad suffered like that, with no reprieve and no effective pain relief, that I'd 'sort him out' even if that meant doing some pretty hard stir as a result.
Thankfully for us and him, he seemed to switch himself off at a time of his choosing and just roll over in bed and die, having never had anything more potent for his pain than cocodamol.
But I think I would have done. And I like to think I'd do the same for my Mum and my lad if there was no letup in their torment.
Because if it was Rover or Tiddles you'd not let them suffer, would you?
Thank god there is stuff stronger than morphine these days I hope I never have to make that choice.
( Sallyrsm, Sat 24 Dec 2011, 17:30, 11 replies)

Wow strong stuff
Me too I guess, would much rather serve time than see a loved one in agony. harrowing.
(mr-lizard Hell's teeth man!, Sat 24 Dec 2011, 17:35, closed)

Yeah.
I've not killed anyone, either.
( monster munch person, man, woman... camera... TV?, Sat 24 Dec 2011, 18:24, closed)

How would you have done it?

( Ring Of Fire A petty, drooling belming butthurt retard., Sat 24 Dec 2011, 18:49, closed)

Proobably an overdose of other meds, to be honest....
or, if it had got to the stage where we were medicating with morphine at home, an air embolus via a syringe.
( Sallyrsm, Sat 24 Dec 2011, 19:12, closed)

Totally with you on this
but patient and family (not doctors) ought to be able to decide this legally thus removing any criminal aspect.
(Victor Mildew going apeshit again, (aka, nightprowleroftheweb), Sat 24 Dec 2011, 22:56, closed)

Shipman aside,
aren't relatives more likely than doctors to have ulterior motives?
( monster munch person, man, woman... camera... TV?, Sat 24 Dec 2011, 23:33, closed)

This is true
but the suject is, a family member wishing to end the suffering of a loved one. The motives of the docs are entirely different.
(Victor Mildew going apeshit again, (aka, nightprowleroftheweb), Sun 25 Dec 2011, 3:20, closed)

When my dad was dying of cancer...
... among the meds brought round was a 250ml syringe of diamorphine. The nurse that was round explained to me that it was really meant to be used in very small amounts, maybe 10-20ml at a time.

You know what? I don't think it was there to be used 20ml at a time.
(gordonjcp, Sun 25 Dec 2011, 0:22, closed)

^This^
is also true
(Victor Mildew going apeshit again, (aka, nightprowleroftheweb), Sun 25 Dec 2011, 3:21, closed)

In most cases...
Towards the end, cancer patients are put on a morphine pump which allows them to self administer, when the patient is clearly on their last legs the restriction on time between doses is often removed from the machine so that the patient can "control the pain" freely i.e overdose.
(superfly78, Sun 25 Dec 2011, 8:26, closed)

I've been there,
when it actually comes down to it, it's not so cut and dried.
(the other guy not the one that gave you coochie warts, Tue 27 Dec 2011, 4:24, closed)