A teenager, 17 years old, has rejected chemotherapy for her cancer. As a result the state of Connecticut has determined she will take the procedure and has confined her to the hospital for treatments.
There is an interesting ideal at play here. The state stepped in and over-rode what the teen wanted and raised a lot of question which are not easily answered.
Why does the teen not have the right to her body? This is especially thoughtful considering the abortion groups constantly remind us that its their body.
At what age does a person have the right to decide for themselves? Another tough question to which there is no one answer fits everyone.
Does she have all the information? Is she told everything about both sides? If so, then why do we force one decision on her.
Is the mother pushing the daughter in this decision? A good question which is debated hotly.
I have known people who have survived cancer, and people who have not. One stopped the treatment because it only prolonged her life, and suffering.
No treatment is 100%, and even cancers which have a high survivability rate one can die from. Even if they get treatment.
The real twist to this story, if she was 18 it wouldn’t be a story. She would be of legal age and rejecting it would be her right. Instead the state forcibly stepped in and made a decision regardless of how someone thought.
What happened to the country where we were free to make our own choices?