Mother, 77, who admitted killing her terminally-ill son with large dose of morphine dies after cancer battle

A mother who admitted to killing her terminally ill child with a large dose of morphine in 1981 has died after her own cancer battle.

Antonya Cooper, 77, died over the weekend after fighting incurable breast, pancreatic and liver cancer.

It comes shortly after she admitted to giving the dose to her seven-month-old child Hamish, who had stage 4 cancer and was 'facing the most horrendous suffering' before his death in 1981.

The former chair of Neuroblastoma UK revealed the youngster had been 'in a lot of pain' as he reached the end of his short life.

In a statement to the BBC, Mrs Cooper's daughter said she passed away at home surrounded by family and it was 'peaceful' and 'pain free'.

Tabitha said: 'It was exactly the way she wanted it. She lived life on her terms and she died on her terms.'

It comes after officers visited the family about Hamish's death.

Mrs Cooper previously said Hamish was 'telling me he was in pain and asking me if I could remove his pain' and that as a mother, she was 'not going to let him suffer'.

The brave youngster had been battling neuroblastoma - a rare cancer that affects children - since the age of five and had been given just three months to live.

And despite 16 months of 'beastly' cancer treatment at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital, Hamish's incurable illness had left him in constant agony.

Since Ms Cooper shared her decision to give her little boy a large does of morphine over four decades ago, Thames Valley Police have launched an investigation.

A spokesperson from the police force said previously: 'Thames Valley Police is aware of reports relating to an apparent case of assisted dying of a seven-year-old boy, in 1981.

'At this early stage, the force is making enquiries into these reports and is not in a position to comment further while these investigations continue.'

Speaking of her decision to give her little boy a large dose of morphine, Mrs Cooper said previously: 'It was the right thing to do. My son was facing the most horrendous suffering and intense pain, I was not going to allow him to go through that.'

Mrs Cooper described in heart-breaking detail how she helped her son die after he begged her to ease his suffering.

'On Hamish's last night, when he said he was in a lot of pain, I said: 'Would you like me to remove the pain?' and he said: 'Yes please, mama',' Mrs Cooper told BBC Radio Oxford.

'And through his Hickman Catheter, external, I gave him a large dose of morphine that did quietly end his life.'

Discussing her decision last May she added: 'We had watched him brave through all that beastly treatment, we had had him for longer than the original prognosis, so the time was right.'

The dying 77-year-old was asked by BBC Radio Oxford if she believed her son knew she was intending to take his life.

'I feel very strongly that at the point of Hamish telling me he was in pain, and asking me if I could remove his pain, he knew, he knew somewhere what was going to happen,' she replied.

'But I cannot obviously tell you why or how, but I was his mother, he loved his mother, and I totally loved him, and I was not going to let him suffer, and I feel he really knew where he was going.'

Mrs Cooper's admission came as she fought to change the law on assisted dying.

Assisted suicide - the act of intentionally helping someone to end their life - and euthanasia - the deliberate ending of a person's life - are both illegal in the UK.

Hamish died at home on December 1, 1981.

In 1979, after his fifth birthday, Hamish started crying in pain and losing weight – and with her mother's instinct, Antonya knew he was 'seriously ill'.

But it took 13 weeks of visits to seven different GPs before she decided to take Hamish to see a private paediatrician at the John Radcliffe Hospital – and even then, she was told there was 'nothing wrong'.

Antonya 'insisted' on further examinations, including blood tests and an X-ray – and it later transpired that Hamish had a grapefruit-sized tumour within his abdomen, namely stage 4 neuroblastoma.

Hamish was then transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), where he underwent chemotherapy, a bone marrow autograft, radiotherapy, and surgery to remove the cancerous tissue, which had shrunk to the size of a tangerine.

His prognosis was three months and he subsequently underwent 16 months of treatment at GOSH, which 'ruined parts of his body' but extended his life.

Antonya said she would have honest conversations with Hamish and his sister Tabitha, who were 'thick as thieves', about the 'probability of his not surviving'.

While Hamish did not ask about death directly, there came a point later on where, in answer to one of his questions, Antonya said to him: 'Yes, Hamish, you probably will die.'

This was incredibly challenging, but after his treatments ended, he returned to school, his hair started to regrow, and in the summer of 1981, the family enjoyed holidays by the sea.

In the autumn, however, Hamish took a knock on one of his ankles and developed septic arthritis, which led to biopsies being taken – and these later revealed that his cancer had 'returned with a vengeance'.

At this point, Mrs Cooper said they 'knew that was the final journey' and, after receiving palliative care at home and being given morphine sulphate, Hamish died on December 1 1981.