Euthanasia: Teenage boy with cancer explains why he wants to die

The grieving family of a teenager who took his own life in front of them hope his story will spark a conversation about euthanasia.

The grieving family of a teenager who took his own life in front of them hope his story will spark conversation about voluntary assisted dying.

Rhys Habermann, then 17, was diagnosed with terminal bone cancer in his final year of school, ABC 7.30 reports.

Rhys, from Wudinna in South Australia, told his parents Brett and Liz Habermann he wanted to end his life when his pain became unbearable. Brett said his son had wanted to go to a hotel in Adelaide and “just do it”.

After 18 months of battling the painful cancer, Rhys died by suicide in January 2017 at his home. He was with his parents, and his younger brother Lewis at the time of his death.

“Even if we had been in danger ourselves, I still would have done it,” mum Liz said.

“I did not want him to die alone, which was the other option.”

RELATED: Push to legalise assisted dying in NSW

Rhys was diagnosed with terminal bone cancer when he was 17.

Rhys said the pain of palliative care was unbearable. Picture: ABC

RELATED: More people interested in assisted dying

But hours after their son died, police arrived. Officers spent 12 hours searching the home, and wouldn’t allow Rhys’s siblings, Lewis and Jorja, to say goodbye to their brother.

A police investigation into Rhys’s death took 18 months. Brett and Liz were eventually cleared of any wrongdoing.

At the time of his diagnosis, doctors told Rhys he needed to withdraw from Year 12, and focus on “surviving”. During his treatment, Brett said Rhys would come home from chemotherapy and be “just continuously vomiting”.

“It was just a real decline,” Liz said. “From this happy kid, young lad, that just, yeah, it was just, the cancer was sad but seeing him like that was really, really hard.”

Rhys had previously been a thrillseeker who loved the outdoors and motorbikes, and had skydived.

Before taking his own life, Rhys asked his family to film him from his bed — as a way to try and protect them from being prosecuted.

Brett and Liz Habermann were investigated for 18 months over the death of their terminally ill son.

“I believe in my right to die by my own choosing,” he said. “This is tough for everybody but I refuse to go through palliative care, after experiencing a little bit of it this last week.

“It’s more painful than I could have ever imagined.

“It’s up there with breaking a bone, and I just refuse to go through that.”

The video proved crucial in clearing his parents from any wrongdoing in his death.

Campaign to introduce voluntary assisted dying laws

Rhys’s family are now involved in a campaign to introduce voluntary assisted dying laws to South Australia.

There have been more than 17 voluntary assisted dying bills introduced to the South Australian parliament, but none have passed.

A new bill would mean terminally ill patients who fit certain criteria would be able to access drugs allowing them to end their lives. The bill is closely modelled on legislation already in place in Victorian, and passed in Tasmania and WA.

The person has to be terminally ill, be 18 years old, have a doctor sign off on their eligibility for the scheme, and then have a second doctor sign off.

Originally published as Euthanasia: Teenage boy with cancer explains why he wants to die