Re: Teen battles state over cancer treatment

According to the article, the boy had a really rough time with the
first round of chemo and radiation and was afraid he wouldn't survive a
second round. This is not a case of neglect where nothing was being
done. The parents even asked the oncologist to monitor the boy's
health. And, as the article stated, how are you going to force a
16-year-old boy to undergo chemo? Is the judge going to mandate that
the boy be forcibly held down and restrained while a needle is being
inserted into his arm? My gut inclination is that this is government
intervention where it is not needed. The parents appear to love and
care for their son, and both the son and parents have done research
into their treatment of choice; it just is different from what the
oncologist recommends. I don't necessarily agree with their treatment
choice either. If, Heaven forbid, that was my child, I would strongly
encourage him to undergo the treatment, adding counseling if that what
was needed to get him through the treatment. If, after that round, he
still wasn't in remission, then I would have to think long and hard
about honoring my child's wishes. I also can't imagine that this
family will have a lot of trust in this particular oncologist either,
and that will also be detrimental to the boy's care. I just have a
hard time with a judge telling people, who are not truly neglectful or
abusive, how to care for their children.

Carolyn



jmorngstar@xxxxxxx wrote:
JulieW8 wrote:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/08/11/cancer.fight/index.html


I just read the article in People. Not having a child, I wondered how
you parents would feel about this?

Janice

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