I don't know it these reports are accurate, but I do know that the judges on this case have been convinced that Terry cannot recover.
"I don't think it is widely appreciated just how damaged her brain is," said Walker, an internist, who has followed the case closely by reading the public record.Schiavo's cerebral cortex, he said, is mostly gone. It was destroyed by the loss of oxygen she suffered when she had a heart attack 13 years ago. Once gone, the cortex cannot grow back, Walker said. The space it once occupied in Schiavo's skull is now filled with spinal fluid.
"The cortex does all our thinking," he said. "Some people argue that it's responsible for personhood. Without a cortex, you can't think, feel, have consciousness."
Schiavo is "awake but not aware," Walker said. Parts of her brain that control reflexes and other basic bodily functions still work. So she can sleep, breathe, blink and make the other moves that fuel the faith of those who seek to save her.
Her lack of consciousness is so complete that, according to Walker, if her feeding tube were to be removed from her stomach, Schiavo would not suffer. His language is chilling; the picture he leaves, almost unimaginable.
"She cannot perceive thirst or hunger. She doesn't have the brain structures necessary for that kind of perception."
The article didn't seek quotes from them as to whether they believed Terry has lost most of her cerebral cortex.
The pro euthanasia doctor refers to this loss which he learned of in the "public record". I wonder if he means MRI images or just his opinion based on a selective reading of Terry's behavior.
I also wonder what percentage the doctor means by "most", 51% vs 99%, and what difference that could mean.