I want everyone to know that this alternative exists for people like Karl - independent, proud people who know what they want. A dignified death at a time and place of their choosing, writes Francoise Jewell

The death of 23-year-old Lily Thai helped raise awareness about end-of-life choice in South Australia, the Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board has said in its latest quarterly report.

Many dying people believe you must choose between palliative care and voluntary assisted dying (VAD). In fact, around 80% of people who choose VAD also receive good quality palliative care right up until the end. 

Here, Kay Fraser tells how Queensland palliative care doctors and nurses looked after her husband John for months until he chose an assisted death.

Mary-Kate shares the story of her husband's assisted death after he was diagnosed with stage 4 colorectal cancer in September 2021

Suffering from cancer and COPD, Laraine Blackson was determined her life would end on her own terms. She chose voluntary assisted dying at her home in Victoria at 2pm on Saturday 17 December 2022, “because that’s the time the siren blows for the football”.

I’m so proud of my mum for so many things. I’m proud that she chose this option of a peaceful, dignified death. If I end up with a terminal illness, I’ll be going the same way, writes Dana Lewis.

Fleur's mum, Claire, chose VAD in 2021 supported by her 100 year old mother, Margaret, who was by her side. Now almost 102, Margaret is frail, deaf, and virtually blind. Having seen the “perfect death” of her daughter, she wants the same for herself.

Suffering intolerably with terminal lung and bowel cancer, 78-year-old Irene Bizon was one of the first Queenslanders to use the state’s voluntary assisted dying law.

In 2021, my husband of 35 years, Stephen, became one of the first people to use Western Australia’s Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD) law. I hope sharing our story will help break the stigma that still surrounds VAD – and support other families going through the process.

As a NSW resident, Mark Springer had to travel to Switzerland to die with dignity. His brother David says he is ashamed to live in a state that still refuses to give its citizens the peace of mind of an assisted death.