Brittany Maynard, death with dignity advocate, dies

Brittany Maynard who moved to Oregon to take advantage of the state's assisted-suicide law took lethal drugs prescribed by a doctor and has died, a spokesman said Sunday.

Maynard, who was 29, had been a nationally recognized advocate for physician-assisted suicide after she was diagnosed with a glioblastoma brain tumor on New Year's Day and was later given six months to live. She and her husband, Dan Diaz, had moved from the San Francisco Bay area because California does not allow terminally ill patients to end their lives with lethal drugs prescribed by a doctor.

Brittany Maynard "passed peacefully in her bed surrounded by close family and loved ones," according to a statement posted on Facebook by the group Compassion & Choices, Oregon-based nonprofit that assisted the young woman through her end of life.

Maynard's story, accompanied by photos from her pre-illness wedding day, got attention across the globe while igniting a debate about doctor-assisted suicide.

She told reporters she planned to take her life Saturday, less than three weeks before her 30th birthday, but later said she was feeling well enough to possibly postpone. She said she wasn't suicidal but wanted to die on her own terms, and she reserved the right to move the death date forward or push it back.

She said her husband and other relatives accepted her choice.

"I think in the beginning my family members wanted a miracle; they wanted a cure for my cancer," she said in early October. "I wanted a cure for my cancer. I still want a cure for my cancer. One does not exist, at least that I'm aware of.

"When we all sat down and looked at the facts, there isn't a single person that loves me that wishes me more pain and more suffering."

On the website of Compassion & Choices, Maynard said she had a bucket list of activities she wanted to complete, including traveling to the Grand Canyon, which she ticked off last month.

"It is people who pause to appreciate life and give thanks who are happiest. If we change our thoughts, we change our world! Love and peace to you all," she wrote in her own obituary.

Oregon was the first U.S. state to make it legal for a doctor to prescribe a life-ending drug to a terminally ill patient of sound mind who makes the request. The patient must swallow the drug without help; it is illegal for a doctor to administer it.

More than 750 people in Oregon have used the Death with Dignity Act, which allows terminally ill residents to end their lives with the assistance of a physician as of Dec. 31, 2013. The median age of the deceased is 71. Only six were younger than 35, like Maynard.

Opponents of assisted suicide say some people who are ill, especially among the elderly, might be unduly influenced by people close to them to end their lives and that other ways exist to ease the suffering of the terminally ill.

Some religious groups and others opposed to physician-assisted suicide have voiced objections to Maynard's decision and advocacy.

Janet Morana, executive director of the group Priests for Life, said in a statement after hearing of Maynard's death: "We are saddened by the fact that this young woman gave up hope, and now our concern is for other people with terminal illnesses who may contemplate following her example."

Oregon does not track how many terminally ill people move to Oregon to die. A patient must prove to a doctor that they are living in Oregon. Some examples of documentation include a rental agreement, a voter registration card or a driver's license.

Oregon voters approved the Death with Dignity Act in 1994, then reaffirmed it — 60 percent to 40 percent — in 1997.

Four other states — Washington, Montana, Vermont and New Mexico — allow patients to seek aid in dying.

Wire services