Facing Early-Onset Alzheimer’s, She Fought for the Right to Plan Her Death

Sandra Demontigny, 45, pushed Quebec to become one of the few places in the world to allow people to choose a medically assisted death sometimes years in advance. The mother of three, not yet 40, had to give up her career as a midwife because of a rare form of Alzheimer’s. She became the spokeswoman for the Federation of Quebec Alzheimer Societies and wrote a book about her experience, “The Urgency to Live.”

Quebec legalized assisted death a decade ago, before the rest of Canada. Under the law, a person had to be in an “advanced state of irreversible decline in capability” and “must expressly confirm their consent immediately” before the assisted death. But the requirements presented a problem for those suffering from an incurable and serious disease like Alzheimer’s, who were likely to lose their capacity to consent.

Dr. Georges L’Espérance, a neurosurgeon and president of the Quebec Association for the Right to Die with Dignity, said Ms. Demontigny helped press to allow for advance requests after becoming the group’s spokeswoman in 2022.

For more information see Norimitsu Onishi “Facing Early-Onset Alzheimer’s, She Fought for the Right to Plan Her Death” The New York Times, February 25, 2025. 

Special thanks to Lewis Saret (Attorney, Washington, D.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.