Cancer patient: we need to talk about dying

A 21-year-old cancer patient from Thornton Cleveleys is leading a poster campaign to encourages people to talk about their dying wishes. Kim Rossall was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer when she was 18. Despite undergoing extensive treatment, she has been told it is incurable.

But despite her illness she and her family are looking to the future. They are now featuring on posters in Blackpool hospitals which advise patients that they have a choice about where and how they would like to spend their final days.

A survey by the Dying Matters Coalition has found that dying remains a taboo subject for many people:

• Just 27% of those surveyed have asked a family member about their end-of-life wishes

• 31% have talked to someone about their own end-of-life wishes

• 37% have written a will

• 31% have registered to become an organ donor