It was wrong for doctors to deny a 19-year-old woman from Birmingham the right to make decisions about her medical treatment, the Court of Appeal has decided.
Sudiksha Thirumalesh, who had a mitochondrial disorder, wanted to move from palliative care and seek alternative treatments for her condition.
But doctors at the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust said she lacked the mental capacity to make such decisions, and they wanted to keep her on palliative care instead.
She and her parents objected, and the case was decided by the Court of Protection, which initially ruled in favour of the doctors.
Although Sudiksha has since died, the Court of Appeal allowed her parents to bring a posthumous legal action because of the vital issues raised by the case.
