COURT RULING DOESN'T ACCOUNT FOR CANCER'S TOLL

Editor:

My wife and I broke the law. And I would do it again. According to Monday's
Supreme Court ruling, when your body begins failing and you are wasting
away due to cancer, tough luck.

My wife was unable to tolerate any opiates, oxycontin made her violently
nauseous, and we had been to three different pain clinics without success.
No appetite and constant pain coupled with the knowledge that this time the
doctors are right. You only have months left to live and the Supremes say,
"Suck it up - too bad, we will put you in jail if you use the drug
suggested by your general practitioner and oncologist." After all, if we
allow seriously ill people to use this natural herb, others will fake
having a terminal disease.

The fact that we were following our doctor's suggestion - they dare not
actually prescribe it - in our own home and were not operating a motor
vehicle or in any way affecting anyone else is immaterial to the court.
These guys claim to believe in states' rights and they do, so long as they
get to dictate 100 percent of the rights for all of the states.

Ten states have studied this issue in depth. Ten states have put the
question to the voters. Ten states were truly being compassionate to those
in pain.

I would like to thank the fine solid citizens who quietly dropped off small
Ziplock bags of hope at our home when we needed them. Patricia never smoked
anything in her life. I found that by cooking it into sauces and using it
as a garnish, it did make a big difference in her final weeks and days at
home. Have you ever tried to push calories on someone who has no interest
in eating anything? Watching a loved one melt away?

Thanks to our friends who were there when we needed them. And, yes, I would
do it again.

Darrell Whitchurch

Gatlinburg