where she lives has called on the UK to change its law to give seriously ill people choices about the end of their life.
Hickman, who has dual British and New Zealand nationality, has chosen to die on 22 May under a law that allows competent adults to choose an assisted death if they have a terminal illness and less than six months to live, or are in an “advanced state of irreversible decline in physical capability”, or are experiencing “unbearable suffering” that cannot be relieved.
Her partner, Paul Qualtrough, said: “No one wants to see her go, but no one wants to see her suffer. The comfort I get is knowing will be gentle and on Tracy’s terms. It’s the best of a bad set of shitty options.”Hickman, an accountant and passionate long-distance runner who has lived in New Zealand for 20 years, was diagnosed with breast cancer in March 2019 after a routine mammogram. “I didn’t tick any of the boxes. I was fit, a vegetarian, I didn’t drink.
Hickman applied for assisted dying, a straightforward process that included assessments by two separate doctors and choosing a date. Between now and then, she is saying goodbye to loved ones and doing “nice things and a bit of life admin”.