Some people fear that The Netherlands’ liberal legislation regarding physician-assisted suicide will lead to abuses & mass suicides. However, the case of a 31-year-old male AIDS patient is used in this story to show that even in ideal conditions, assisted suicide is not easy for either the family or the physician. An inset briefly reviews the laws in the USA, Canada, Japan, Mexico, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Israel & South Africa on euthanasia & physician-assisted suicide.