The Trouble with Dying

After being diagnosed with late stage ovarian cancer, Cindy Cowan wants the right to choose how she is going to die. Linda Jarrett has suffered from multiple sclerosis for over 15 years. She is investigating the options for ending her life, before her degenerative disease makes it impossible for her to act on her own. Currently, medically assisted dying is illegal in Canada. And while some advocates, such as Dr. Richard MacDonald believe offering terminal patients help in ending their lives is the compassionate thing to do, opponents such as Professor Margaret Sommerville believe the medical system must uphold respect for all human life. The issues surrounding the right-to-die debate are further coming to a head since Quebec introduced legislation in 2013 that would allow for medically assisted dying in some cases. Cindy and Linda examine the options available to them, confronting their own mortality in the process.