Teen Refusing Chemotherapy - A 17-year-old girl from Windsor Locks will be keeping her fingers crossed on Thursday as the Connecticut Supreme Court hears her controversial case which hinges on the even more contentious 'mature minor doctrine.
The teenager identified as Cassandra C. on court documents is suing the Department of Children and Families for compelling her to undergo chemotherapy against her will.
"The bigger question is: Can a smart and knowledgeable 17-year-old make the same choice, for better or worse, than she would be able to make without state interference nine months from now, when she turns 18," Joshua Mitchom, a public defense attorney who is representing Cassandra said.
Cassandra, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in Sept. 2014, is objecting to chemo treatment because she says it is itself. The mother of the teenager Jackie Fortin, who supports her decision, says Cassandra has always maintained that she did not want any form of chemotherapy, which she described as "poison" is she ever has cancer.
But the Department of Children and Families is questioning the child's right to make this decision and the mother's decision to support her.
"When experts, such as the several physicians involved in this case, tell us with certainty that a child will die as a result of leaving a decision up to a parent, then the department has a responsibility to take action," the department said in a statement.
But Fortin's attorney Michael Taylor has argued that there is absolutely no certainty that the chemo therapy would be successful. "None of us disagree with that," he said.
Cassandra is currently being held in a room at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford. Medical experts say the teenager has an 80% to 85% chance of survival with chemotherapy. However, without any treatment, her death is almost certain within 2 years.
Reports indicate that the Cassandra abruptly stopped showing up to the hospital after her Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis. The prompted the department to take custody of her from her parents. Even then, the teenager managed to run away from home, but was caught and has since been placed under close supervision.
Mitchom says Cassandra has the right to 'bodily integrity' just like every adult. Reports indicate that the teenager will be 18 in a few months and would have the right to legally determine the course of action regarding her forced chemo treatment.
