There are many people in this world who feel they have a justifiable reason to end their lives but are unable to do so on their own for physical reasons, mental or religious. However, there is a procedure called physician-assisted suicide (PAS) in which a doctor prescribes a lethal dose of a drug that kills the patient in the most humane way possible. This procedure differs from other procedures, such as euthanasia – the act of deliberately ending a person's life to relieve their suffering – because it is the patient who decides when to take the medicine and end their life . There are many controversial debates about whether assisted suicide is right or wrong and, therefore, whether it should be legal. Opponents of this medical procedure, particularly those with strong religious beliefs, argue that regardless of a person's health status, one should never decide when to end their life. But this controversy raises a question: who owns an individual's life? Is it the government? Is it God? Or is it the person who is struggling and, therefore, that person should have the legal right to decide when and how to give up their life? There are many views on this issue based on ethics and religion. People opposed to assisted suicide might argue that the stress that a serious illness, such as cancer, produces on a person could deteriorate their outlook on life. In fact, many studies (Pirl, 2004) show that most patients face some degree of depression, anxiety and fear when cancer is a part of their lives. Other illnesses, such as Alzheimer's disease, directly affect people's minds and their ability to think. Those who oppose PAS suggest that people with these types of illnesses may not have enough reasoning skills to establish logical... middle of paper ...... suicide professionals who help their patients will be prosecuted for murder under tougher rules. laws. Therefore, in order to protect the individual rights of patients, there must be a law allowing doctors to help their patients die peacefully. For many, a law allowing people to end their lives may be uncomfortable. Assisted suicide is a controversial measure aimed at relieving the suffering of terminally ill patients. But what needs to be analyzed is that the only ones who cannot determine when it is worth living are the patients who are suffering. Society must, under universal laws, guarantee the free will of each individual regardless of religion or race, as long as it does not affect the lives of others. The most humane way to achieve this is to allow an expert to assist those who want to end their lives and at least help them carry out their wishes in a secure and controlled environment...