A terminally ill U.S. woman who became a leading advocate for assisted suicide for dying patients has taken her own life.
Brittany Maynard died Saturday in Portland, Oregon after taking a lethal dose of medication, three weeks before her 30th birthday.
Maynard was diagnosed earlier this year with advanced brain cancer and was given little time to live.
She and her husband, Dan Diaz, left their home in California because Oregon allows terminally ill patients to end their lives with lethal drugs prescribed by a doctor.
Viral video
A video Maynard posted online announcing her intentions to commit suicide by November 1 garnered millions of views from around the world, and she became a spokesperson for a nonprofit organization that pushes for passage of assisted-suicide laws.
But as late as last week, Maynard announced she was feeling well and may postpone her planned suicide.
A statement from the organization Compassion & Choices said late Sunday Maynard died "as she intended - peacefully, in her bedroom, in the arms of her loved ones."
More than 750 people have taken their own lives since Oregon passed its assisted-suicide law in the late 1990s.
