by NexDev | November 14, 2016 | News, Old age and Dependency, Palliative care
On November 14, 2016, Tugdual Derville was a guest speaker on “Sud Radio”, invited by Philippe David for the broadcast “I Stand Alone” in the discussion on assisted suicide, following the Mercier Case.
Tugdual Derville, guest on “Sud Radio” on November 14, 2016
Some quotes from the broadcast:
« We are all scared of suffering (…) The challenge is to prove to everyone, even to the weakest, the most vulnerable, that they have their place among us.”
“The ban on murder underpins brotherhood.”
“My life was given to me, I didn’t request it. Is my life a project or something that requires a consent? It is rather brutal and painful to see our society gradually developing the idea that everyone’s life is a project and that it must be successful; whereas a large part of my life consists in accepting the deeply entrenched roots which are part of myself. What I decide to do with my body and my life not only affects me. It also affects my family and loved ones. Suicide is a real social tragedy that concerns all of us. »
“How heroic on the part of the family caregivers to assist their loved ones to the very end, without ever yielding to the temptation of euthanasia! (…) I want to congratulate the people who take care of those who are at the end of their life, and who never appear in the headlines of our newspapers.”
« In the countries where assisted suicide was legalized, some people in good health request suicide.”
“Is such a request a genuine act of freedom, when made by someone who is suffering? Did the person receive all the care he really deserves?”
« Medicine has achieved remarkable technical progress. Technical advances are important, but they also need to be humane. (…) It would be completely ungrateful to entirely denigrate medical progress. Quadriplegic Philippe Pozzo di Borgo (from an Aristocratic French family author of “Le Second Souffle” (Second Breath) which inspired the award-winning French film “Untouchables”) would not be alive today if it were not for medical progress.”
“Loneliness is today’s tragedy: Society suffers more from loneliness than from actual physical suffering.”
“Individuals going through a suicidal crisis need to be protected from putting an end to their life.”
« The word “courage” connected with suicide, could imply that courage lies in dying, whereas very often true heroism consists in continuing to live.”
“Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland are counter-examples for us: after having opened the door for cases which were considered exceptional at the time, they now have voted laws which allow a person who is tired of living to die in a so-called “dignified” way. As soon as we cross the line where killing is forbidden, we don’t know when or where to stop…”
by NexDev | November 10, 2016 | Old age and Dependency
On November 4, 2016, the French National Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies “(Insee)” published a report on centenarians.
In Europe, France has the most centenarians (21,000 in 2016), surpassing Spain, Italy, Switzerland and Portugal. This represents 20 times more the number recorded in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Since 1975 the number of centenarians has regularly increased by approximately 7% per year. If the trend continues, by 2070, France could have 270,000 centenarians.
What is the demographic profile of these centenarians?
Firstly, the majority of the centenarians are women (84%). One out of 2 still resides at home (with the majority being men). Twenty-nine percent live alone, 3% are couples, and 15% live with someone else, most of the time with one of their children. The individuals born in the 1970’s are more likely to live longer than 100 years compared to the previous generation. According to the recent French analysis, by 2070: 9 out of 10 women, and 8 out of 10 men born in the 90’s will become octogenarians, whereas 13% of women and 5% of men born in the 70’s or previously will reach their 100th birthday. These so-called ‘supercentenarians” – those living to the ripe old age of 110 years – are practically all women.
But have we reached the limit of the human lifespan?
Another French “Insee” study on demographic profiles, reports the number of deaths in 2015, as being the highest since the post-war period. Compared with 2014, these latest figures emphasize the significant decrease in life expectancy. The “Insee” analysis reports that decreased lifespan in that year is essentially due to a higher number of deaths reported in individuals over 65 years of age. The analysis attributes this to 3 factors: the long and severe flu episode lasting 3 months during the first semester of 2015, responsible for 24,000 deaths; as well as the heat wave in July, and period of cold weather in October 2015. Thus during 2015, the average woman’s lifespan was 85 years, and the average man’s lifespan was 78.9; compared to 85.4 and 79.2 respectively in 2014.
Additionally, a study carried out by the Albert Einstein Medical School in New York and published in the October 13, 2016 issue of Nature, concludes that there is a maximum age for humans and this maximum has been reached.
The survey compiles an impressive quantity of data for at least 40 countries or regions: in particular for the USA, UK, Japan and France. Jean-Louis Serre, Professor of Genetics who analyzed this study states: « Whether they like it or nor, the bioethics miracle makers will have to admit that man cannot overcome nor deny his natural condition. It is highly plausible that even by combining the most favorable factors for good health, man will not exceed a longevity maximum, which the authors evaluated as the age of Jeanne Calment”.
by NexDev | November 10, 2016 | Bioethics, Medically Assisted Procreation
The gene responsible for sickle cell could be « repaired » by using the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing tool. This was announced in a study published in the magazine Nature by researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine.
Sickle cell is a widespread genetic disease affecting hemoglobin in red blood cells. It is due to a single gene mutation that makes a hemoglobin protein with symptoms including anemia, excruciating pain, and a higher risk of infections. This is a hereditary disease with autosomal recessive transmission resulting when both parents pass on a mutant allele to their child. Sickle cell disease is widespread throughout the world, affecting up to 5 million individuals. It was discovered independently in Africa and India, where the incidence is particularly high. Yet with the movement of people across borders, it is now reported in America, especially in the West Indies, Brazil and Western Europe. In 2013, 441 children with sickle cell disease were born in France; meaning one child affected for every 1,900 births.
Current treatments have greatly improved the lifespan for the affected patients, but they are limited. CRISPR-Cas9 could treat the disease at the root cause, where the red blood cells are formed. Thus the stem cells of the patients could be treated to repair the defective gene, those in the blood-generating cells of the bone marrow.
The American research team tested this gene-editing tool on stem cells from 4 sickle cell patients. Their results showed that in 30-50% of the diseased cells, the mutation had been repaired. The team plans to make an initial submission to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hoping to conduct a human clinical trial in 2018.
If the clinical trials confirm the results of these gene-editing modifications with CRISPR-Cas9, it would represent an enormous step-forward in healthcare to treat or to improve the quality of life for many patients.
Alliance VITA underlines the ethical issues related to this technique, if it was to be employed on germ cells or on human embryos. The slogan for the No GM Baby information campaign launched in May 2016 to alert and warn the public was: « Yes to therapeutic progress – No to transgenic embryos »
Tugdual Derville, Alliance VITA’s General Delegate and main defender for this appeal declares :
« We encourage genuine progress in science and medicine based on true care for humanity. In this case, we see therapeutic progress, to be supported and encouraged.”
by NexDev | November 10, 2016 | Euthanasia and Suicide, Press Releases
The Appeals Court in Lyon rendered its verdict this past Thursday, November 10th. Jean Mercier was acquitted for the charges of having helped his wife commit suicide in 2011.
On October 27, 1915, the octogenarian was condemned for non-assistance to a person in danger of death. He received a punishment as a matter of “principle” for a one year suspended prison sentence, whereas the prosecutor had requested a minimum penalty of a three-year suspended prison sentence. Mr. Mercier appealed the conviction, the punishment, as well as the prosecutor, thus the appeals hearing was held in Lyon.
The lawyer for the General Counsel, Fabienne Goget, had declared that 83 year-old Josanne Mercier “was not at the end of life, she did not suffer from an incurable disease. She had osteoarthritis and anxiety. Death was not the only solution”. She also pointed out that Jean Mercier “acted in the name of his philosophical convictions, attesting that he didn’t have regrets”, and mentioned the couple’s membership in the Association for the Right to Die in Dignity, which has been ubiquitous in this case. After last September 8ths court hearing, Jean Mercier stated: “I don’t care about the sentence, I would prefer to be acquitted, but what matters is continuing the fight to advance our cause”.
Tugdual Derville, Alliance VITA’s General Delegate and author of « The Battle against Euthanasia » * states:
« The idea is not to accuse Mr. Mercier, who is fragile, but it is essential to reject any act of jurisprudence that decriminalizes assisted suicide. Firstly, it makes no sense politically, and constitutes a serious breach of judiciary power bowing down to political authority. It is also a humanitarian catastrophe since this case leads us to believe that there is no longer a universal prevention against suicide, but on the contrary some kinds of assisted suicide which could be encouraged. What is notable in this particular case, artfully manipulated by euthanasia promoters, is that Jean Mercier’s advanced age and disease were considered as motives for his acquittal. His lawyer also declared that Mr. Mercier and his wife had a “dominator-dominated” relationship. This result is extremely dangerous leading one to assume that Jean Mercier had no other alternative except to kill his wife. Recall in the Lydie Debaine case, during the first hearing she was acquitted, but following the outcry from the associations of handicapped individuals, she was granted a second hearing on appeal where she received a “symbolic” sentence which meant that “there were other options”. Exploiting such cases to “breach the dikes” has terrible implications for vulnerable and fragile individuals, not only those who have doubts about their value and purpose in life, but also for their caretakers who are primarily concerned. To acquit a person who has helped someone who is not at the end of life, commit suicide, is confusing for caretakers facing difficult situations? The ban on killing is a safety guard for these types of circumstances.
It is important to ask ourselves the question of how to provide social and collective support for vulnerable individuals. What is really at stake here is a universal prevention of suicide, which we demand, as opposed to emotional manipulation of family tragedies.”
by NexDev | November 10, 2016 | News
Two recent examples illustrate the dangers of abuse in assisted suicide in Switzerland, confirming the growing pressure to cross over the legal boundaries by using the excuse of individual freedom, even when there is no serious or terminal illness.
Firstly, the Swiss Federal Statistical Office reported 742 cases of assisted suicide, for 2014, more than 2.5 times compared with 2009, and accounting for 1.2% of all deaths in Switzerland that year.
Secondly, at the beginning of October, 2 brothers filed an emergency suit with the Geneva civil court against one of the main Swiss assisted suicide associations, EXIT (the other is Dignitas). The objective of this procedure was to stop their 83-year old brother from killing himself. According to the 2 brothers their sibling is not suffering from any serious illness, and his request is due to a temporary depression. The man who wishes to die mentioned “his disability” due to his advanced age and his grief to have lost “a wonderful wife”.
Initially scheduled for October 18, the assisted suicide has been put on hold by court order. On October 24, the court audience was held, and the family is now awaiting the judge’s decision.
This terrible family dispute highlights what the 2 brothers refer to as the “Exit philosophy»: “People should be aware that cases like this exist”. They add that they prefer to “have a clash with a living brother rather than be in communion with a dead one”.
This is the first case the court has treated since the Exit association decided in April 2014, to extend their pre-requisite conditions to also accept people suffering from “multiple aged-related disabilities”. For the 2 brothers’ lawyer, the ethical standards of the Swiss Academy of Medical Science are not being respected: “There are very strict requirements. The end of life must be imminent and all the possible treatments having failed. “
On the contrary, Exit considers that these standards “are not necessarily legally binding”. According to their lawyer, “the right of this person to die supersedes the 2 brothers’ affection for him. Death is a personal affair. We shall all die, then better to die in a dignified manner.”
The Editor-in Chief for the Swiss Medical magazine “Revue”, Bertrand Keifer, makes the following analysis of the case: “Whenever a request for suicide is made, there should be a quandary, on the one hand between the obligation to provide assistance and on the other hand, the respect of self determination. (…) These cases are always complex. Announcing a request for suicide can be an ambivalent message. The family and close friends have the right to wonder whether or not it is a cry for help. (…) Assisted suicide has a traumatic impact on them, they themselves become victims.”
