After the case of little Charlie, I came across a facebook post about little Nancy, anyway I will take off the newspaper what it says.
www.mirror.co.uk/news/real-life-stories/begged-judge-end-sick-daughters-4509235.amp
Nancy was born blind with hydrocephalus, meningitis and septicaemia. It meant she could not walk, talk, eat or drink and spent hours screaming in agony
They must have been the hardest words any mother could ever have to imagine about her child.
But devoted Charlotte Fitzmaurice bravely wrote them down and handed them to a High Court judge to win for 12-year-old daughter Nancy what she believed she needed most.
To put an end to her suffering – and finally to be at peace.
Nancy was born blind with hydrocephalus, meningitis and septicaemia. It meant she could not walk, talk, eat or drink.
Her quality of life was so poor she needed 24-hour hospital care and was fed, watered and medicated by tube.
As her health deteriorated, she spent hours screaming in agony despite the morphine and ketamine she was given.
For Charlotte too, the pain of seeing her daughter suffering like this was too much to bear.
So after 12 heartbreaking years, she went to court to fight for Nancy’s right to die.
Her moving 324-word statement was read out by Justice Eleanor King in August.
Giving the reasons why Nancy should be allowed to die, Charlotte said: “My daughter is no longer my daughter, she is now merely just a shell.
“The light from her eyes is now gone and is replaced with fear and a longing to be at peace.
“Today I am appealing to you for Nancy as I truly believe she has endured enough. For me to say that breaks my heart.
“But I have to say it.”
In a landmark decision, Justice King immediately granted Charlotte’s request.
Nancy died 14 days later at London’s Great Ormond Street with her family around her after fluids were withdrawn.
The ruling sets a precedent. It is the first time a child breathing on her own, not on life support and not suffering a terminal illness has been allowed to die.
The judge’s decision was fully supported by doctors at the world famous children’s hospital – but it is bound to reignite the “right to die” debate.
And it will be further fuelled by what Nancy’s parents’ have to say today.
Charlotte, 36, had the support of Nancy’s dad, company boss David Wise, 47.
And the pair agreed to share details of Nancy’s case because they believe parents facing the same life-or-death decision should be able to make it without going to court.
They think parents should decide with medics at hospital rather then pleading in front of a judge.
It is a controversial stance. Nancy’s case comes five years after the High Court approved the death of baby Ronnie Bickell. He was born with a genetic condition that rendered his muscles useless.
A year later Hannah Jones made headlines in a High Court story that took a remarkable twist – and bolstered the case against the right to die.
At 13, she refused a life-saving heart operation. Herefordshire Primary Care Trust applied to the High Court to force the op but dropped the case after she convinced them she did not want surgery.
The next year Hannah, of Marden, decided to have the operation. The transplant was successful and she made a full recovery.
Charlotte, 36, never had such hopes of a happy ending for Nancy. She was told her baby was likely to be born severely ill two days before she gave birth in July 2002.
Charlotte was carrying Group B Streptococcus. It had gone untreated during her pregnancy.
She says: “Hearing my little girl’s condition could have been treatable in the womb was unbearable. If caught early, simple antibiotics can treat it.
“Instead Nancy was born blind with meningitis and septicaemia. It was utterly devastating. But I knew I would love her no matter what.”
At 10 days old, Nancy had to have a shunt fitted in her brain. She spent a month in hospital but was finally allowed to go home. Doctors warned she was likely to die before her fourth birthday.
Ronnie was on a ventilator and could not communicate but could hear, feel and see.
After months of round-the-clock care the hospital applied to turn off his life support, leaving his mum and dad on opposite sides of a bitter court battle.
In November 2009 a High Court judge ruled with his mother Kelly that Ronnie’s quality of life would not be good enough to justify the medical care. Ronnie was 13 months old when his life support machine was switched off.
There is more if you want to read it, but if you had a child that had utterly no quality of life what would you do?