Should Euthanasia be legalized - Essay Example

Involuntary euthanasia is considered as murder in most countries. This can be said to be euthanasia performed to a person who was able to provide consent on whether he chooses to die or not. As much as this practice has come to form part of some countries in the world, in most countries of the world it is illegal and many are yet to embrace the positive sides of euthanasia. Euthanasia is a term that was first applied in the 17th century, and the term was used to refer to a quick and painless death.

Towards the approach of the 21century, more countries got to embrace this as it proved to be a solution towards illness related issues. The act became in the light of many critics including religions like Christianity. According to the Bible, God is the Supreme Being and the giver of life, and from this angle most of church faithful has argued that no man has the authority over the life of another. Euthanasia as a practice is known to be administered to patients who have suffered long illnesses and do not seem to show any form of improvements.

The type of illnesses euthanasia is administered are mostly terminal illnesses. A terminal illness is an illness which when one develops, he then has no chance to recover. Definition of terminal illness in a country like Netherlands is that terminal illness is a ‘concrete expectancy of death’, Some countries like Oregon has further illustrated the definition of terminal illness as that illness within reasonable judgments will produce death within six months, this is to state that with terminal illness, death is inevitable.

When one suffers from terminal illnesses like cancer or a heart related illness, there are many implications in relation to what he goes through. A family member who develops a terminal condition goes through many hardships which are related to the illness he has, this is in relation to fear of his or her life ending, pain and constant stress. Chemotherapy is a cancer related treatment. In this type of treatment, chemicals are used as medication. This treatment is used in cancer treatment as a way of destroying cancerous cells.

It is also meant as a way of ensuring that cancerous cells do not spread to other parts of the body. Chemotherapy treatment has been known to be effective in some cases around the world. One disadvantage of this type of treatment is that it is very expensive and not many people can afford it. Chemotherapy has long term and short term effects that a patient may face. Short time effects are such as constant dizziness, constipation, and nausea and general discomfort. The long term disadvantages are that the treatment is time consuming and there are always a risk of the cancerous cells regenerating after the treatment is through.

It is for these drastic effects of terminal illnesses that some countries chose to embrace euthanasia as the way out. Spending all of the family money on one member of the family is a decision that can be said to be dangerous in relation to the well being of the other family members. The attempt to treat a family member diagnosed with cancer has been known to put families in tough financial situations. As much as one would give anything for a family member to get better, considerations should always be taken regarding how the remaining members are to continue living.

Persistent vegetative state is a condition which is known to be one with both ethical and medical