My healthy sister, 51, took her own life at Swiss suicide clinic after losing her only son

THE sister of a grieving mum who chose to die at a Swiss clinic said she is disgusted her family were not contacted.

Anne Canning secretly travelled from her home Pembrokeshire to the controversial Pegasos clinic to end her life in January last year.

She was aged 51 and perfectly healthy but grieving her son who died a few months prior.

Her story mirrors that of Wendy Duffy who ended her life at the clinic on April 23 after her son died in a tragic accident.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Anne’s sister Delia Canning said being told of her death was “like living in a horror film”.

Delia, 54, added that the lack of warning was disgusting.

According to guidelines from the Swiss Medical Association, a family should always be told when their relative plans to die.

However, the 2022 guidelines are not legally binding.

Delia discovered her sister’s intention when she and her two brothers received goodbye letters from Basel, Switzerland.

The siblings previously believed their sister was there on holiday.

Anne’s family then heard nothing and they raced to contact her using postmarks. After days of silence a two-line email arrived from Pegasos confirming her death.

Delia said: “The impact Anne’s decision had on us was more about the shock and horror that such a thing could be arranged and executed in such a short timeframe, in absolute secret from all loved ones, with no other avenues being explored first.”

Earlier this month Wendy Duffy paid the clinic £10,000 to help her end her life after her son Marcus choked to death aged 23 four years ago.

Under Swiss law, it is illegal for Pegasos to profit from assisted dying, although Wendy paid £10,000 for her trip to the facility.

Clients of Pegasos, a non-profit organisation, fund their own medication and pay for their own doctors and funeral costs.

A small amount of the cash paid by clients like Wendy also goes to the Swiss state.

Ruedi Habegger, Pegasos founder, told The Daily Mail: “I can confirm that Wendy Duffy, at her own request, was assisted to die on April 24 and that the procedure was completed without incident and in full compliance with her wishes. 

“I can also confirm that neither we nor any of the professional staff assessing her mental capacity had any doubt as to her intention, understanding and independence of both thought and action. In historical terms at English law, hers was a case of ‘sane suicide.’”

Wendy chose to die wearing one of her son’s T-shirts because it still smelled of him, she said.

Speaking to the Daily Mail earlier this week she added that she was: “Going to go out to Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars singing ‘Die With A Smile’.”

The clinic has faced renewed scrutiny following Wendy’s death and the rise of “suicide tourism” from vulnerable British citizens.

In August last year Irish mother Maureen Slough, 58, travelled to the Pegasos clinic on July 8 to seek an assisted death after telling her family she was on holiday in Lithuania.

Her daughter Megan Royal received a Whatsapp from Pegasos informing her of mum’s death and that her ashes would be sent in the post.

Two years before she died, Maureen lost her two sisters and her family say she had long struggled with mental illness.

The organisation allegedly said it received a letter from Megan, stating she was aware of and accepted her mum’s decision to die.

The clinic also claimed it verified the letter’s authenticity through an email response from Megan, using an email address her mum provided.

But Megan insisted she never wrote the letter or verified any contact from the clinic.

The family said Maureen may have forged the letter and created a fake email address to verify it.

Assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland as long as it is not done for self-serving reasons and the clinic can show the client’s condition is severe, long-lasting and treatment resistant.

The clinic’s criteria states a client may receive assisted suicide if their quality of life is “qualitatively poor”.

Pegasos was approached for comment.