Hull man's family who support assisted dying say brain tumour robs him of dignity and peace

A Hull family whose lives have been torn apart by a brain tumour diagnosis say they fully support the assisted dying bill.

MPs backed proposals to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales on Friday, in a historic vote. The family of Andy Maynard, 53, who was diagnosed with a brain tumour a month ago, said it comes too late for him but welcome the proposed law change.

Andy is currently in Dove House Hospice and has suffered several seizures after becoming rapidly ill following his diagnosis. His daughter, Kiera Johnson, said he was a supporter of assisted dying and it has been difficult to watch him endlessly suffer.

Kiera told Hull Live: "He's had a rapid decline. Throughout this whole process he's said, 'This isn't what I want. I just want to be able to take a tablet and go to sleep and not wake up',

"He was a very active person. Six weeks ago, he was helping to fit a boiler in my mum's house and to go from that to now where he is... It mimics stroke-like symptoms so the left side of his body has been useless for weeks. He is a shell of the person he was."

Andy's symptoms developed suddenly. Kiera said he is in a lot of pain despite the care he is receiving.

"Originally, he got diagnosed with brain cancer five weeks ago," said Kiera. "We were waiting for the full diagnosis and then we heard it was terminal and he wouldn't have months, he would have weeks.

"Four days after that he had a very bad seizure at home. He ended up at Hull Royal Infirmary and they said he'd had two bleeds on the brain and another bleed on the brain could kill him."

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His family believed it was the wrong place for him and fought for him to be moved to Castle Hill Hospital in Cottingham which specialises in cancer and is the home of Queen's Centre for Oncology and Haematology. On Tuesday, he was moved to Dove House Hospice and is in a shared room with three other men.

Kiera said: "He doesn't want this. He wants the choice to be able to say 'Right, I want to be able to go this day, make memories for my family for a week and die how I want to which is peacefully and not slowly losing everything about me.'

"He has given us full permission to tell his story because wants people to hear it and he wants the Assisted Dying Bill to be passed. He wants people to have a choice in how they die because at the minute he's just suffering, he's in pain, he's had two brain bleeds, he's had two seizures now, he is constantly in pain and on a syringe driver for constant pain relief."

Kiera said the family is glad Andy is now under the care of Dove House and are satisfied with his care, but the nature of his severe and highly disabling illness takes a huge toll on him.

She said: "He is in constant pain. He didn't want this, he didn't want to suffer and he didn't want to be in pain and he didn't want to lose his dignity - and all of that has happened."