University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust v K & Anor [2020] EWCOP 31

​The Trust was seeking an order declaring that the P lacks the capacity to consent to the medical treatment for cancer and further, that it was in her best interests to undergo a combination of radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

The P, who is in her late thirties, was diagnosed with cancer in May 2020. The Trust wanted to start treatment for it by the end of June 2020. Without the treatment the P will die within a year and her death will be painful, exacerbated by complications such as fistulas. By contrast, the treatment contains a 30 – 40% chance of being effective, i.e. there is a 30 – 40% prospect of survival for more than 5 years, after which it is considered she will have a normal life expectancy. Her current symptoms which are painful, will abate. However, the treatment will trigger an early menopause and render her infertile.

The court made the order sought.

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