The 86-year-old actor, best known for playing the beloved character Harold Bishop on the Australian soap since 1987, took a step back from the show in December when he announced he had been diagnosed with terminal pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma, a rare and aggressive lung cancer.
In a new interview, Smith revealed that he had applied for VAD – which is legal in Australia under particular circumstances for adults with terminal illnesses – but decided against it when the pharmacist phoned him arranging to deliver the drugs to keep at home for the day he decided to die.
Neighbours star Ian Smith has said that he is “glad” that he decided not to go ahead with his initial plans for voluntary assisted dying (VAD).
Smith said he “wholeheartedly” approves of VAD – having watched his parents, birth mother and wife all die of cancer – but he does not agree with the drugs being kept in the home.
Smith said that if he had taken the drugs for assisted dying, he would have “missed out on that wonderful day in December when I was told of my progress”.
