Judge to rule Friday on teen's forced chemo case

Categories: Health Care
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Photo by Unhindered by Talent
Will a judge force a 13-year-old boy battling cancer to undergo chemotherapy against his family's wishes? The judge on the case is expected to rule Friday.

The family says they opted out of chemotherapy treatment because of religious beliefs, but a Brown County attorney is trying to force the treatment to save the kid. The case has brought out a slew of alternative medicine advocates who support the family's decision. But doctors say Daniel Hauser, 13, would have a 90 percent chance of survival with chemo treatment and a 95 percent chance of dying without it.

The family is part of the Nemenhah, an American Indian religious organization. The family does not claim to be Indian.

Attorneys submitted final arguments to Judge John Rodenberg on Tuesday.

Here is a recap of the story:
The Brown County attorney has filed a petition claiming a family's choice to not put their son through chemo for Hodgkin's lymphoma is child neglect and endangerment. Attorney James Olson hopes the judge will order the parents to go through with the treatment.

But here's the crux of the debate: The family says the cancer treatment through chemo violates their religious beliefs. The family has opted for more alternative and natural therapies like herbs and vitamins.

Will the courts overstep a family's religious beliefs to potentially save a child's life?

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