( CNN ) A San Francisco woman battling cancer is prepared to battle the state of California in court for what she says is her right to die on her own terms . `` I am suing the state of California to help me achieve a peaceful and dignified death at the place and time of my choosing , '' Christie White said Wednesday at a news conference . White has had either leukemia or lymphoma since 2007 , undergoing rounds of radiation , chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant . Though she 's in partial remission now , White has seen other friends with terminal illnesses suffer and would like `` to have the option of aid in dying in California , '' the lawsuit says . White was joined by physicians , also named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit , who want the right to administer aid-in-dying treatments to patients without penalty . Two of those physicians have been diagnosed with terminal illnesses , offering personal and professional perspectives on the issue . `` I have a lust for life . I may want to stick around for the duration , but I should have a choice , '' said Dr. Robert Liner , a retired obstetrician who is in remission from stage IV lymphoma . Liner brought up the case of Brittany Maynard , whose decision to `` die with dignity , '' as she called it , went viral in a video she made of her story and an op-ed she wrote for CNN . Her case reignited the debate over patients ' right to decide when and how they die . Maynard 's desire to die when she wanted meant she and her husband had to move from San Francisco to Oregon , one of three states that have `` death with dignity '' laws that allow terminally ill , mentally competent residents to voluntarily request and receive prescription drugs to hasten their death . Washington and Vermont are the others . Judicial decisions in Montana and New Mexico authorize doctors to prescribe fatal drug doses in such circumstances , although the rulings have n't become state law . Having to move to another state compounded the emotions the family was already facing , said Maynard 's mom , Debbie Ziegler . `` Moving added so many layers of stress and sadness that I can understand why people who are ill feel they would need to file a lawsuit , '' Ziegler said . Maynard , who had brain cancer , died in November 2014 . The lawsuit , filed by White , Liner and others Wednesday , would update the text of Section 401 of the California Penal Code adopted by the California Legislature in 1874 . The Assisted Suicide Statute says , `` Every person who deliberately aids , or advises , or encourages another to commit suicide is guilty of a felony . '' The plaintiffs , which include White and the five physicians , are seeking a declaration that would allow doctors to administer dying aid to mentally competent , terminally ill adults without criminal liability . `` Such choice is at utmost importance for all of us , '' said Dr. Dan Swangard , another plaintiff . Swangard has suffered from pancreatic cancer and metastatic disease to the liver . He is in remission . Kathryn L. Tucker is the executive director of Disability Rights Legal Center and also represents White and the physicians . Tucker has spent 20 years working for `` end of life advocacy '' and has seen many ballot initiatives fail . This lawsuit provides a `` faster and viable avenue '' than traditional legislation that she has seen fail numerous times . Maynard 's husband , Dan Diaz , said the lawsuit is evidence that `` so many people are in favor '' of giving patients the control when it comes to their end-of-life plan . `` How people die does n't belong in the hands of a lawmaker or a politician , '' Diaz said . His wife 's commitment to the issue , he said , has been the catalyst for last month 's proposed legislation in California and for Wednesday 's lawsuit filing . Even after her death , Diaz said he is `` amazed and so proud '' of his wife . Barbara Coombs Lee is the president of Compassion & Choices , the organization that made the video about Maynard . She called news of the lawsuit `` a wonderful development . '' `` Giving people the choice of aid in dying is enormously important for their peace of mind , '' Coombs Lee said . Dr. Aaron Kheriaty is a psychiatrist and chairman of the medical ethics committee at the University of California , Irvine . He said organizations and lawmakers have tried and failed four times in California to pass legislation regarding `` end-of-life options , '' usually calling the concept a variety of palatable names such as `` death with dignity '' or `` aid in dying '' to distract voters from what the issue really is : `` assisted suicide . '' Kheriaty said that most people who consider suicide do n't want to die but are looking to `` escape intolerable suffering , '' or in the case of those facing terminal illnesses , `` anticipated suffering . '' `` Modern medicine has other options to help with suffering at the end of life , '' Kheriaty said . Kheriaty finds the concept of `` suicide as a rational or reasonable option '' to be worrisome , as it brings acceptance to what he calls a `` public health crisis . '' He said allowing physicians to legally assist suicide opens the door for insurance companies to potentially prey on the most vulnerable patients . Diaz said that he understands the concern , but that if his experience in Oregon with his wife was any indication , these aid-in-dying treatments are administered only in very specific cases and only after immense scrutiny of the patient . He added : `` I do n't think we should base policy in fear . '' Tucker said that `` in order for a patient to obtain aid in dying , there are many safeguards in place . '' `` These treatments are limited to a small group of patients , '' she said . California Attorney General Kamala Harris is listed as the defendant on the lawsuit , as she 's the only one who can overturn a previous law . A representative from her office responded with `` no comment '' to the lawsuit . CNN 's Brandon Griggs contributed to this report .
A woman and her physicians sue California for the right to `` die with dignity '' Christie White does n't want to have to move to another state . The lawsuit would allow doctors `` assisting in dying '' to do so without violating law .