I have an 87 year old sister who has terminal cancer.  She has decided not to do any chemo therapy.  The side effects on the therapy are more than she wants to endure.  She live in Oregon and they have a "death with dignity" law and she intends to exercise that option at somewhere along the way.  People who call it "assisted suicide" taint the notion.  Our birth certificate has an expiration date.  In most cases we don't know the date.  Death with dignity gives people the option of certain date.