HEALTH bosses sought High Court permission to stop artificially feeding a patient at York District Hospital so he could die, the Evening Press can reveal today.

But the patient, Keith Blacklock - who had been in a totally dependent quadriplegic and unresponsive state since a catastrophic neurological illness in 1984 when he was 31 - died of natural causes before the case could get to a full hearing.

His widow said today it had come as a great relief when she realised that her husband might be allowed to die, because she had watched him go from 13 stone to six-and-a-half stone, and he had no prospect of recovery and no quality of life.

"As one family member said: "You wouldn't keep a dog alive like that."

The widow, whose Yorkshire address is being withheld by the Evening Press to protect her privacy, said she was relieved her husband had died of natural causes and the case had not had to go to court.

"I would have been devastated if the court had decided he should not be allowed to die," she said. "That would have been the worst possible outcome.

"But it would still have been very hard if the court had agreed to let him die.

"The family has endured a great deal of stress and sorrow over many years and hope we can now put this behind us and look to the future."

York Health Trust asked the High Court in 1998 to declare that the withdrawal of artificial feeding and hydration would be lawful. The Evening Press has been unable to report any details of the case until now because of an injunction imposed at the time, preventing identification of Mr Blacklock or the hospital or trust.

That injunction has now been lifted following his death earlier this year. A Trust spokesman said today that it had begun the court action because, in the opinion of the patient's consultant, continuing with artificial feeding and hydration was not in his best interests.

"Independent clinical advice about the condition of the patient was obtained, and the matter was discussed fully with the patient's family who agreed with the proposed course of action...

"The Trust would like to publicly extend its sympathies to the patient's family for their loss.

"Although the death of the patient by natural causes brought legal action to a conclusion, the Trust remains of the opinion that it was in the patient's best interests to seek clarification from the High Court over his continued artificial feeding and hydration."