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Daily Mail
11 hours ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
My mother died of assisted suicide and now I'm doing the same for a heartbreaking reason
A retired Canadian pilot battling terminal cancer is preparing to die this summer in the same way his mother did - more than a decade after her final act helped inspire the country's controversial assisted dying laws. Price Carter, 68, from Kelowna, British Columbia, was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer last spring. The disease is incurable, but rather than fearing his impending death, Carter is calmly preparing for it - determined to go out on his own terms with the help of Canada 's Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) program. 'I'm okay with this. I'm not sad,' he told the The Canadian Press this week in a candid interview. 'I'm not clawing for an extra few days on the planet. I'm just here to enjoy myself. 'When it's done, it's done.' Carter is set to tread a path blazed by his mom, Kay Carter, who in 2010 secretly flew to Switzerland to end her life at the Dignitas facility, an assisted-dying organization, aged 89, following an excruciating years-long battle with spinal stenosis. At the time, assisted dying was illegal in Canada, but Kay's story sparked a national conversation. Five years later, in 2015, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that, in certain circumstances, competent adults suffering from intolerable illnesses or ailments have the constitutional right to seek medical assistance in dying (MAID). The ruling became known as the Carter decision. The federal government followed the ruling with legislation in 2016, and later expanded eligibility following a court challenge in March 2021. Now, Price Carter is preparing to utilize the very law his mother's death helped birth. 'I was told at the outset, 'This is palliative care, there is no cure for this.' So that made it easy,' he told the National Post of his decision. 'I'm at peace,' he added. 'It won't be long now.' Unlike his mother, Carter won't be required to travel thousands of miles to end his life. When the time comes, he plans to die in a hospice suite, surrounded by his wife, Danielle, and their three children, Grayson, Lane, and Jenna. Carter said he has chosen not to die at home because he doesn't want the space, which has been filled with so many happy memories over the years, to be transformed into a place of grief. He plans to spend his final hours playing board games with his wife and children. Then, after taking three different medications, his life will be over. 'Five people walk in, four people walk out, and that's okay,' he told The Globe and Mail, envisioning his death. 'One of the things that I got from my mom's death was it was so peaceful.' Price Carter, along with his two sisters and brother-in-law, accompanied Kay Carter on her surreptitious trip to Switzerland in 2010 to be with her for her final hours. Before her death, Kay penned a letter explaining her decision to end her life, and her family helped draft a list of 150 people to send it to after the procedure was completed. She was unable to alert them of her intentions ahead of time because of the risk that Canadian authorities would attempt to stop her from traveling to Switzerland or prosecute any family members who assisted her. Price said he remembers his mom's death vividly. After filling out the necessary paperwork, she settled into a bed and ate chocolates before a physician gave her a lethal dose of barbiturates to make her heart stop. What stood out to Price Carter was how at peace his mother seemed, following years of being robbed of mobility and crippled by excruciating pain brought on by her spinal condition. 'When she died, she just gently folded back,' he recounted. Reflecting on that moment reduced him to tears. However, he insisted he wasn't crying out of sadness - instead, he was moved by how serene and graceful the process was. 'When it was with my mom, it was one of the greatest learning experiences ever to experience a death in such a positive way,' he told the Globe. 'If I can give that to my children, I will have been successful.' Carter said he is at peace with the road ahead. He isn't interested in pity or condolences. He had spent much of the last few months swimming and rowing. But as the symptoms of his deadly affliction take hold, his energy is beginning to fade, and now he passes the time he has left gardening or fixing his pool. Carter recently completed one medical assessment for MAID and expects to undergo a second this week. If his application is approved, he could be dead by the end of the summer. 'People don't want to talk about death,' he said. 'But pretending it won't come doesn't stop it. We should be allowed to meet it on our own terms.' MAID has long been a contentious topic of debate in Canada, prompting discussion on whether the procedure should be legal and who should qualify. In 2021, when the law was expanded, a controversial clause was included that would allow people suffering solely from a mental disorder to be considered eligible for assisted death. The proposed change prompted widespread panic among lawmakers and mental health professionals nationwide, and the amendment has now been delayed until March 2027. Last October, Quebec became the first province in Canada to allow advanced requests for MAID, allowing people with dementia or Alzheimer's to formally request assisted death ahead of time, before they are no longer capable of consenting. Carter is calling for the policy to be adopted nationwide. He believes limiting advanced MAID requests to only Quebec is leaving vulnerable people to waste away in fear elsewhere in the country. He said advanced requests afford individuals the comfort of knowing they aren't, as he bluntly put it, 'going to be drooling in a chair for years.' 'We're excluding a huge number of Canadians from a MAID option because they may have dementia and they won't be able to make that decision in three or four or two years. How frightening, how anxiety-inducing that would be,' he said. Dying with Dignity Canada, a national charity that advocates for access to MAID, is echoing Carter's call. Helen Long, who heads the organization, but declined to be interviewed for this story, pointed to polling figures that reportedly show the majority of Canadians support advanced requests for MAID. Statistics show that assisted dying is becoming more common in Canada, according to the National Post. In 2023, the latest year for which national statistics are available, 19,660 people applied for the procedure, and just over 15,300 were approved. More than 95 percent of those were individuals whose deaths were considered reasonably foreseeable, the outlet reported.
The Province
20 hours ago
- The Province
B.C. son of woman who inspired assisted dying law chooses to die on his own terms
His mom's name is on the landmark Supreme Court of Canada case that gave Canadians the right to choose a medically assisted death just over a decade ago. Published Jun 02, 2025 • 5 minute read Price Carter, left, son of Kay Carter, in photo in foreground, pauses for a moment during a news conference at British Columbia Civil Liberties in Vancouver in 2016. Photo by JONATHAN HAYWARD / THE CANADIAN PRESS Price Carter is planning to die this summer. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors The 68-year-old Kelowna man has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. He knows it will take his life eventually. Before it does, he intends to die on his own terms with his family at his side. 'I was told at the outset, 'This is palliative care, there is no cure for this.' So that made it easy,' he said from his home. Carter said he's always known that medical assistance in dying would be an option 'that I would exercise if I could, if needed to.' He has that option, in large part, because of his mother. Kay Carter's name is on the landmark Supreme Court of Canada case that gave Canadians the right to choose a medically assisted death just over a decade ago. Price has finished a first assessment and said he expects the second assessment deeming him eligible for the procedure to be completed this week. He spoke openly and calmly about his final days and his decision to end his life. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'I'm at peace with this, I truly am, and I would have been years ago,' he said. It's been nearly a year since he first started experiencing symptoms and got a diagnosis. Until a couple of months ago, he said, he was swimming and rowing. He and his wife Danielle went golfing recently, playing best ball. 'She dragged me down that course,' he said with a laugh. But his energy is starting to fade. He knows how he wants the next step to unfold. It was more than 15 years ago that Price, along with his sisters Marie and Lee and his brother-in-law Hollis, surreptitiously made their way to Switzerland to be with their mother on her final day. The 89-year-old was living with spinal stenosis and chose to go to a non-profit facility that provided medically assisted death. She became the 10th Canadian to do so. Essential reading for hockey fans who eat, sleep, Canucks, repeat. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. At the time, assisted death was illegal in Canada. Kay Carter wrote a letter explaining her decision and her family helped draft a list of about 150 people to send it to after she died. She couldn't tell them her plans in advance because of the risk that Canadian authorities would try to stop her from going to Switzerland, or prosecute the family members who helped her. When she got to the Dignitas facility, she finalized the paperwork, settled in a bed and chased down the barbiturate that would stop her heart with Swiss chocolate. 'When she died, she just gently folded back,' Price said. After a few minutes, one of the attendants from the facility walked over to the door, 'and the curtains billow out, and she says, 'There, her spirit is free,'' he said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'If I was writing the movie, I wouldn't change that.' He said the memory makes him cry today, though not from sadness. The cancer, and the treatment, have made him emotional — the experience itself was beautiful. 'I wish for my children that they can see my death like I did my mom's,' he said. He said wants his wife, Danielle, and his kids to be there. His children — Lane, Grayson and Jenna — live in Ontario. They're all busy, he said, so when the time is right he'll try to find a date that works for everyone. For now, he's doing a lot of reading. 'I'm just gonna keep hanging on, day by day, and enjoying my Danielle.' The Carter family had a long road after Kay's death in January 2010. Her eldest daughter Lee was the driving force behind taking the case to the Supreme Court, which issued a unanimous decision in early 2015 that struck down sections of the Criminal Code that made it illegal to help someone end their life. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In 2016, the federal government passed legislation that created the country's regime for medical assistance in dying and made it legal for people whose deaths were 'reasonably foreseeable' to apply for an assessment. After a 2019 ruling in the Quebec Superior Court found it was unconstitutional to restrict assisted dying to people whose deaths were reasonably foreseeable, the Liberal government updated the law in 2021. That update included a controversial clause that would allow people suffering solely from a mental disorder to be considered eligible for an assisted death. The proposed change caused widespread worry among provinces and some mental health professionals, and has now been delayed until March 2027. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In the meantime, Health Canada has been studying what Canadians think of allowing people to ask for medical assistance in dying through an advance request. Advance requests would allow people with Alzheimer's, dementia, or other degenerative conditions to make the application and decide when they'd like to end their lives. Price Carter said that change 'is such a simple thing to do.' 'We're excluding a huge number of Canadians from a MAID option because they may have dementia and they won't be able to make that decision in three or four or two years. How frightening, how anxiety-inducing that would be,' he said. He admitted to feeling frustrated at the pace of change, though he said he knows his 'laissez-faire' attitude toward death is uncommon. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Helen Long, the president of Dying With Dignity Canada, said numerous federal consultations have shown there's broad support for advance requests dating back to 2016. 'We're continuing to advocate and ask our new government … to make advance requests legal for Canadians,' she said. Quebec has passed legislation to allow people with serious and incurable illnesses to apply through an advance request for a medically assisted death in the event that they become incapacitated. Marjorie Michel, who was recently named health minister in Prime Minister Mark Carney's new government, said it's a question of balance. 'It's so personal for people, and I think in some provinces they are not there yet,' she said. But when asked if the government plans to allow advance requests, she deferred to her colleague in the Justice Department. A spokesperson for Justice Minister Sean Fraser said Michel would be best positioned to respond. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Health Canada is set to release a report with the key findings from its consultations on the matter this spring. Medical assistance in dying is becoming more common in Canada. In 2023, the latest year for which national statistics are available, 19,660 people applied for the procedure and just over 15,300 people were approved. More than 95 per cent of those were people whose deaths were considered reasonably foreseeable. Price Carter said he wants to talk about his condition because he wants Canadians to talk about death, as uncomfortable as it is. 'The more conversations we can spawn around kitchen tables, the better,' he said. 'We're all going to die. It's part of the condition of living. And yet we do ignore this, to our peril.' Read More Vancouver Canucks Sports Vancouver Canucks Vancouver Whitecaps News
National Post
2 days ago
- Health
- National Post
Son MAiD pioneer Kay Carter plans assisted death after terminal cancer diagnosis
Price Carter is planning to die this summer. Article content The 68-year-old has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. He knows it will take his life eventually; before it does, he intends to die on his own terms with his family at his side. Article content 'I was told at the outset, 'This is palliative care, there is no cure for this.' So that made it easy,' he said in an interview from his home in Kelowna, B.C. Article content Article content Article content Price has finished a first assessment and said he expects the second assessment deeming him eligible for the procedure to be completed this week. He spoke openly and calmly about his final days and his decision to end his life. Article content 'I'm at peace with this, I truly am, and I would have been years ago,' he said. Article content It's been nearly a year since he first started experiencing symptoms and got a diagnosis. Until a couple of months ago, he said, he was swimming and rowing. He and his wife Danielle went golfing recently, playing best ball. Article content 'She dragged me down that course,' he said with a laugh. Article content But his energy is starting to fade. He knows how he wants the next step to unfold. Article content Article content It was more than 15 years ago that Price, along with his sisters Marie and Lee and his brother-in-law Hollis, surreptitiously made their way to Switzerland to be with their mother on her final day. Article content The 89-year-old was living with spinal stenosis and chose to go to a non-profit facility that provided medically assisted death. She became the 10th Canadian to do so. Article content At the time, assisted death was illegal in Canada. Kay Carter wrote a letter explaining her decision and her family helped draft a list of about 150 people to send it to after she died. She couldn't tell them her plans in advance because of the risk that Canadian authorities would try to stop her from going to Switzerland, or prosecute the family members who helped her. Article content When she got to the Dignitas facility, she finalized the paperwork, settled in a bed and chased down the barbiturate that would stop her heart with Swiss chocolate. Article content
CBC
3 days ago
- General
- CBC
Son of woman who inspired Canada's assisted dying law choosing to die on his own terms
Social Sharing Price Carter is planning to die this summer. The 68-year-old has been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. He knows it will take his life eventually; before it does, he intends to die on his own terms with his family at his side. "I was told at the outset, 'This is palliative care, there is no cure for this.' So that made it easy," he said in an interview from his home in Kelowna, B.C. Carter said he's always known that medical assistance in dying would be an option "that I would exercise if I could, if needed to." He has that option, in large part, because of his mother. Kay Carter's name is on the landmark Supreme Court of Canada case that gave Canadians the right to choose a medically assisted death just over a decade ago. Price has finished a first assessment of his eligibility for the procedure and said he expects the second assessment to be completed this week, clearing the way for him to end his life. He spoke openly and calmly about his final days and his decision. "I'm at peace with this, I truly am, and I would have been years ago," he said. It's been nearly a year since Price first started experiencing symptoms and got a diagnosis. Until a couple of months ago, he said, he was swimming and rowing. He and his wife Danielle went golfing recently, playing best ball. "She dragged me down that course," he said with a laugh. But his energy is starting to fade. He knows how he wants the next step to unfold. Family fought for mother It was more than 15 years ago that Price, along with his sisters Marie and Lee and his brother-in-law Hollis, surreptitiously made their way to Switzerland to be with their mother on her final day. The 89-year-old was living with spinal stenosis and chose to go to a non-profit facility abroad that provided medically assisted death. She became the 10th Canadian to do so. At the time, assisted death was illegal in Canada. Kay Carter wrote a letter explaining her decision and her family helped draft a list of about 150 people to send it to after she died. She couldn't tell them her plans in advance because of the risk that Canadian authorities would try to stop her from going to Switzerland, or prosecute the family members who helped her. When she got to the Dignitas facility, she finalized the paperwork, settled in a bed and chased down the barbiturate that would stop her heart with Swiss chocolate. "When she died, she just gently folded back," Price said. After a few minutes, one of the attendants from the facility walked over to the door, "and the curtains billow out, and she says, 'There, her spirit is free,'" he said. "If I was writing the movie, I wouldn't change that." He said the memory makes him cry today, though not from sadness. The cancer, and the treatment, have made him emotional — the experience itself was beautiful. "I wish for my children that they can see my death like I did my mom's," he said. He wants his wife, Danielle, and his kids to be there for his final moments. His children — Lane, Grayson and Jenna — live in Ontario. They're all busy, he said, so when the time is right he'll try to find a date that works for everyone. For now, he's doing a lot of reading. "I'm just gonna keep hanging on, day by day, and enjoying my Danielle." Long road after 2010 The Carter family had a long road after Kay's death in January 2010. Her eldest daughter Lee was the driving force behind taking the case to the Supreme Court, which issued a unanimous decision in early 2015 that struck down sections of the Criminal Code that made it illegal to help someone end their life. In 2016, the federal government passed legislation that created the country's regime for medical assistance in dying and made it legal for people whose deaths were "reasonably foreseeable" to apply for an assessment. After a 2019 ruling in the Quebec Superior Court found it was unconstitutional to restrict assisted dying to people whose deaths were reasonably foreseeable, the Liberal government updated the law in 2021. That update included a controversial clause that would allow people suffering solely from a mental disorder to be considered eligible for an assisted death. The proposed change caused widespread worry among provinces and some mental health professionals, and has now been delayed until March 2027. In the meantime, Health Canada has been studying what Canadians think of allowing people to ask for medical assistance in dying through an advance request. Advance requests would allow people with Alzheimer's, dementia, or other degenerative conditions to make the application and decide when they'd like to end their lives. Price said that change "is such a simple thing to do." "We're excluding a huge number of Canadians from a MAID option because they may have dementia and they won't be able to make that decision in three or four or two years. How frightening, how anxiety-inducing that would be," he said. He admitted to feeling frustrated at the pace of change, though he said he knows his "laissez-faire" attitude toward death is uncommon. WATCH | Advance requests for MAiD now allowed in Quebec: Quebec now allows advance requests for medical assistance in dying 7 months ago Duration 2:02 The federal government says it will not interfere with Quebec's new law allowing people to make advance requests for medical assistance in dying (MAID), though some doctors in the province are opposed. Helen Long, the president of Dying With Dignity Canada, said numerous federal consultations have shown there's broad support, dating back to 2016, for advance requests. "We're continuing to advocate and ask our new government … to make advance requests legal for Canadians," she said. Quebec has passed legislation to allow people with serious and incurable illnesses to apply for a medically assisted death in the event that they become incapacitated through an advance request. Marjorie Michel, who was recently named health minister in Prime Minister Mark Carney's new government, said in an interview that it's a question of balance. "It's so personal for people, and I think in some provinces, they are not there yet," she said. But when asked if the government plans to allow advance requests, she deferred to her colleague in the Justice Department. A spokesperson for Justice Minister Sean Fraser said Michel would be best positioned to respond. Health Canada is set to release a report with the key findings from its consultations on the matter this spring. Medical assistance in dying is becoming more common in Canada. In 2023, the latest year for which national statistics are available, 19,660 people applied for the procedure and just over 15,300 people were approved. Price Carter said he wants to talk about his condition because he wants Canadians to talk about death, as uncomfortable as it is. "The more conversations we can spawn around kitchen tables, the better," he said.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Newsroom Ready: Price Carter seeks medical assistance in dying a decade after his mother's case made it legal
Price Carter explains his decision to seek a medically assisted death after being diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer last summer. His mother, Kay Carter, was at the centre of the landmark 2015 Supreme Court of Canada case that struck down parts of the Criminal Code making assisted death illegal. (May 31, 2025)
