British Columbia woman denied cancer treatment

British Columbia (BC) has the second highest euthanasia rate in Canada.

Alex Schadenberg
Executive Director, Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

Sign our petition: BC Health Authorities Must Stop Using Euthanasia to Replace Medical Care (Petition Link).

Kim Angell

Kim Angell (41), who lives in Ladysmith British Columbia (BC), is organizing a campaign to change the healthcare system in BC for people who live with cancer.

An article by Jordan Cunningham that was published by Chek News on July 17 tells of Kim Angell and her campaign to get the BC government to fund cancer treatment that is necessary to extend her life.

Angell, who has been living with incurable Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer for 2.5 years, can't get a drug that she needs because she is considered incurable. Cunningham reports:

Kim Angell lives with incurable Stage 4 breast cancer.

“The average lifespan of someone living with metastatic breast cancer is three to five years, and I’ve been living with this for two and a half years,” says the 41 year-old.

In May, a PET scan confirmed a progression, and Angell needed to switch to a medication known as Enhertu. She says the drug is not provincially funded, but she got access to a course of treatment through an application by her oncologist to Astrazeneca’s Patient Support Program.

A common side effect of cancer-slowing drugs is neutropenia, which can be offset with injections of Filgrastim.

Angell says BC Pharmacare no longer covers this drug now that she’s deemed incurable.

“Just because we may be living with Stage 4 cancer and are no longer considered curable, we still deserve access to those treatments because our lives are important,” she says.

Angell says she recently purchased ten injections of Filgrastim for $500, which will last her six weeks.

Angell has contacted BC Premier David Eby and BC Health Minister Adrian Dix. Cunningham reports Angell as saying:

“I feel like my life doesn’t matter,” she says in regards to the lack of funding for terminal patients, “I want action.”

“I’m so grateful to be here today, even with all the other stuff that I’m dealing with,” she says. “That’s all you can do, is focus on what you’ve got right now.”

An article by James Reinl that was published in the Daily Mail stated that the number of British Columbia euthanasia deaths increased by 24% in 2022 to 2515 euthanasia deaths, representing the second highest rate of euthanasia in the world.

A recent article by Will Potter that was also published in the Daily Mail indicated that Fraser Health, a healthcare authority in BC has been sending a slideshow promoting euthanasia to pensioners. Potter reported:

The slideshow included advice on 'expressions of wanting to die', noting that it can be used to 'promote a sense of control'. Terminally ill patients are also seemingly offered the chance to die within 'a day'.

British Columbia is making it easier to die by lethal drugs than to live with medical treatment.