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Palliative Sedation: The new debate over end-of-life treatment in Canada

Palliative sedation is an end-of-life treatment that renders terminally-ill patients unconscious in the last stages of dying. It is used to alleviate excruciating pain, but some call it a form of "slow euthanasia," and say it may even hasten death....
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The Current21:57Palliative Sedation: The new debate over end-of-life treatment in Canada - May 20, 2014
Palliative sedation is an end-of-life treatment that renders terminally-ill patients unconscious in the last stages of dying. It is used to alleviate excruciating pain, but some call it a form of "slow euthanasia," and say it may even hasten death.

Debate around end-of-life care in Canada is emotional and fraught with tension. However, one thing most of us can probably agree on is that when the time comes, we hope our death would be a quick and painless one.

When someone has a terminal illness, doctors have an arsenal of drugs to make patients comfortable. But sometimes, these drugs aren't enough to ease the pain. In a small number of cases, palliative sedation is used.

The Lanctots are one family who had to make the tough decision about whether to use palliative sedation. In 2009, Stephanie Lanctot was diagnosed with cervical cancer at age 23. Despite extensive treatment, the cancer spread. When the pain became unbearable, Stephanie requested palliative sedation.

It's a hard decision to make, but when you see someone suffering so much, especially your own daughter, we just had to make her comfortable.Maggie Lanctot, mother of Stephanie Lanctot

CBC reporter Laurie Fagan is in Ottawa. Laurie's research on this topic was aided by a journalism grant she received from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

What do you think about palliative sedation treatment?

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