I believe this is a case where the state has to protect the child, who would have had no say in the matter; and, thankfully, our society is not going to allow a child to die without trying to save him or her. Many children have had chemotherapy and been cured; a little grand nephew of my is one of them. So, chemo is not a bundle of laughs, but most sufferers seem to prefer it to death - even people of my generation and older. Personally, at 73, I would go with palliative care, and hope I didn't drag it out. But that would be my decision for me. Nobody, including parents, has the right to make that choice for a 6 year old kid who, with proper treatment, could have another 3 decades of life ahead of him. The fact that the parents don't share a name, and have called the poor little bugger 'Oshin', says much about them.

Poirot, I am so sorry for what you and your family are going through. My only advice is to accept all help you are offered, and if you haven't already, write down some of the stories your mum has told you about her life. These stories will be a comfort later on.

Ttbn, you are disgracefully judgmental in your assessment of a family you know nothing about. Even if this society was still in the dark ages of gossiping about whether couples were married or not, how do you know if the mother in question IS married, but kept her maiden name?

I have a friend whose daughter was gravely ill with cancer at 11 years old. She went through a year of hell with chemo and radiotherapy. She is now a healthy 24 year old with no further signs of cancer. At no stage did she or her family even consider saying no to treatment, as she was told there was a 60% chance of cure.

Many people diagnosed with cancer will fight it with much worse odds and at any age.
It never ceases to amaze me that the very elderly often fight with every fibre of their being to beat cancer and live longer.
The will to live is very strong.

Thanks, folks...much appreciated.

SM,

Yes, I know that parental concern well. Instinctively they are the centre of the universe.

I've two children too - born 19 years apart. My first born, although she'd sailed through the first almost ten years, suddenly stopped producing insulin. OMG! - and although we had her to the docs a few times, it wasn't picked up until she was quite sick. In the days after, as we were learning all about Type 1 diabetes, I was rather cross it hadn't been picked up earlier. If I'd known what I knew three days later, I could have diagnosed her myself!

However, we were always acutely aware that it was a manageable condition, there was insulin and diet and exercise to balance - and it is hard at first to get your head around it...needles were always of the least concern to my daughter, it was the danger of low blood sugars that were the bane. They have to be treated promptly - but you can't have high blood sugars as well because they are also dangerous.

It wasn't cancer - it was diabetes..and we could manage it...but still shook us up.

Btw, my daughter does 4 needles a day, every day. She's fit and healthy. She's still using the same Novo Pen she started using a few months after diagnosis. I takes vials of insulin. Superior Norwegian technology provides a pen she has been using since 1992....Wow!

My mum today looked like she'd grown much weaker. My now 33 year-old daughter sat patiently and gently painting her Nanna's nails. Nan always liked to look nice, you know. I was proud of my girl for paying her grandmother this homage - bestowing her a little dignity.

More than we should pity the child, we should pity the doctor and the judges because they will end up with karma that will make themselves go through the hell of chemotherapy.

This is a case of forcing a particular outlook on life on others who do not share it. This is why I stress again and again over these pages that it's wrong for one big state to rule over the whole of this continent, as it seems that some people are unable to respect the values of others and abstain from using state-violence to inflict their particular values on them.

The Western/Christian/Medical tradition is prejudiced in believing that life is better than death. More precisely, they attach a mystical importance to the fact that a body with human genes is breathing. Somehow, they don't attach the same importance to others (animals), so when a dog suffers they hurry to euthanase it, not to mention other animals which they eat though healthy. This is an inconsistent superstition.

Life and death are both gifts as well as duties: both are necessary for our spiritual progress. Unless we are saints/prophets, we have no way to tell whether one has completed his/her duties on this earth and better shed their body, proceeding to death and the next life. What if one's duties were completed in 6 years? Why linger unnecessarily in a body that's no longer required? If anyone (other than sages and prophets) is to have a clue in this matter, then it's the person herself - and when unsure, it's best to allow nature to run its course rather than violently pushing this way or the other.

As he's still unable to speak for himself (or perhaps he is, but nobody is listening, cruelly believing that a 6yo cannot tell what they want: I remember being 6yo myself and I know that I could!), Oshin chose to be born to his parents so they can represent him, not to the said/sad doctor. This is what makes parents the most probable people to express the correct wishes of their child.

Yuyutsu, sadly, there are many parents in this world that do not 'choose' what is right for their children, so that is why the wider community should be prepared to step in if necessary to keep kids safe.

One only needs to see the parents drinking alcohol, self medicating, or smoking heavily while pregnant, or looking after small kids, to realize the world is not always a safe place for kids, 'spiritually' or otherwise.

I can't believe you would be happy to leave unloved or neglected kids with uncaring or dangerous parents simply because you think they 'chose' these parents and the parents 'probably' have their best interests at heart?

Dear Poirot,

I have a nephew who has diabetes 1, and injections with
insulin are a part of his life so I understand your
situation. Also, your daughter sounds like a very loving
and caring person. You've done a good job!
Doing her grand-mother's nails would
mean a great deal to her grandmother. My mum is settling
in quite nicely into her nursing home. She gets her nails
done there, as well as a weekly visit to the hairdressers.
It's all part of increasing her self esteem - and she
looks forward to it.

Dear Suse,

Your posts make a great deal of sense - and as a nurse you're
speaking from experience. I'll be watching the "Sixty Minutes,"
program tonight on channel nine.