The only outrage that exceeds Kenneth R. Stevens Jr.’s Oct. 31 letter, “Death with Dignity’s lax safeguards,” beyond his own lax use of statistical inference and lack of compassion, is that it is none of his business. I was diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic lung cancer in June 2019, caused by a previously excised sarcoma. Before that, I had a dozen surgeries that included two major reconstructions of my left arm, two rounds of radiation and two large skin grafts. Facing chemotherapy and thoracic surgery as palliative care to buy time, I contacted a physician who practices Death with Dignity. Knowing I could access the law gave me the mental relief that if things got nasty, I had a safe and reliable exit.

This past summer, I developed a small bowel sarcoma that was successfully removed. But during that time, I suffered from severe anemia, fatigue, nausea, fever and stomach pain. I gained a clear picture of what it would feel like to die from having my intestines filled with growing and bleeding tumors. Death with Dignity is my choice, if I so choose. Like most things in our society, my access to the law is probably aided by being “white, well off,” but in the end, not “well.” There is no reason why underserved and minority communities should not have the same option.

Only 245 people died using the law in 2020, compared to 8,280 Oregon deaths from cancer alone that year, hardly a sign of exponential growth in Death with Dignity.

Steve Brown, Portland