BRUSSELS – An academic study shows that euthanasia deaths in northern Belgium have more than doubled over the past half-dozen years to reach 4.6 per cent of all deaths.
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The universities of Ghent and Brussels found that since euthanasia was legalized in 2002, acceptance of the intentional act of ending a life at the patient’s explicit request has greatly increased. The previous 2007 survey showed only a total of 1.9 per cent of deaths through euthanasia.
The practice is legal only in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg and the rate in northern Belgium now tops the Dutch 2010 total of 2.8 per cent.
Those requesting euthanasia are mainly highly educated and between 65 and 79, the study found. Cancer patients form the biggest group.
The study limited itself to the majority Dutch-speaking part of Belgium.
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