In 2001, a 21-year old girl, Abigail Burroughs, died of cancer after having been denied access to experimental cancer drugs which were later approved by the FDA. If Abigail had been allowed to take the drugs after all her treatment options had been exhausted, she may have survived.
Abigail's father, Frank Burroughs, has now launched an effort to allow terminally-ill patients the opportunity to experiment with investigative drugs in a last ditch effort for survival. Frank brought a lawsuit to a Washington D.C. appeals court arguing that terminally-ill patients have a constitutional right to experimental drugs (under the Constitution's "right to life" guarantee). Earlier this month, Frank's lawsuit was rejected 8-2, but he plans for an appeal.
His argument seems valid: "Why not let a patient and his or her doctor, rather than bureaucrats, make the final, desperate, informed decision regarding experimental drugs?"
What do you think? Should dying patients be allowed access to experimental drugs as a final chance at life?
I vote yes. For the full article click here.
MV
