THREE FORKS — Here in Montana, the right to die has been a hot topic recently, with the state senate debating a bill that could criminalize doctors for prescribing life-ending medication. I sat down with one woman as she shared her story of being diagnosed with terminal cancer—and how she’s fearful that her hard decision is about to become much harder.

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“I beg—I beg to be allowed to make that decision for myself, for my kids, for my parents. It should be solely my decision, and my decision alone to make,” says LaDonna Johnston.

LaDonna lives on a quiet street in Three Forks. Pink accents throughout her home, it’s there where she told me about her cancer journey.

“At 41, I went in for just a regular old mammogram screening, not expecting anything at all. And unfortunately, they did find a cancerous lump,” LaDonna tells me.

That was back in 2020, when LaDonna was first diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer.

“It was terrifying. I was absolutely terrified. I had no idea what to expect," she says.

But after 15 rounds of chemo and 33 rounds of radiation, she entered remission.

“I got to ring the bell, and it was great. You know I felt really good. I was doing really good right up until this point,” LaDonna explains.

In June of 2024, LaDonna tells me she started feeling off.

“I was having some back pain. I was losing some weight. I didn’t have much of an appetite,” she says.

She got a mammogram that came back clean, raising hopes. But, an MRI in November 2024 revealed a tumor in her breast that spread throughout her body, all the way up to her brain.

“And so, I knew in that moment that I was going to die from it. I knew,” LaDonna says, holding back tears.

LaDonna will be starting a new chemo treatment on April 10. She expects to lose the hair she’s worked so hard to grow back since her first treatments. If this chemo works, the doctors give her about 18 months to live.

“The hardest part of all of this is telling my kids. There’s no booklet for that. And there’s no easy way to tell your children that you’re going to die. But they’ve been so brave. So brave," she says.

LaDonna has three kids: her oldest daughter, Chloe, 25; Caleb, 22; and Harper, 17. Despite LaDonna’s unthinkable position, she’s maintained a positive attitude. But?

“I knew immediately, right away, that if it was terminal and I was going to pass from it that I would want to use medical aid in dying,” LaDonna explains.

Which has been available in Montana since 2009. But the state legislature has been debating a bill that would criminalize prescribing life-ending medication to terminally ill patients—patients such as LaDonna, taking away her right to decide.

“I want my kids to remember their fun, vibrant mom. I don’t want them to see me like that. And I would never want to put my parents through the torture of their only daughter, their baby, their youngest child? Going through that,” LaDonna says.

LaDonna is confident that she will decide how she goes, and when. Even if it means leaving her home state of Montana.

“I’m not giving up. I’m going to keep fighting for as long as I can, and I want to be here for my kids. I know that I’m considered terminal, but I’m not living my life that way,” says LaDonna.

LaDonna’s looking forward to enjoying her summer spending time with family and friends, camping, and learning to fly fish with a new pink rod she was gifted. She also spends her free time making breast cancer awareness clothing, for sale at various locations in Three Forks, such as the Frontier Club, the Plaza Bar, and even the Bunkhouse Bar in Toston.

But LaDonna has had a hard time enjoying her days recently, with the looming senate bill that’s expected to be voted on this week.

“What I hope to see next week? Is that the house votes 'No' and that this bill is squashed, and we don’t have to worry about it," she says. "That I can have at least that peace of mind going forward? Would be everything for me."

If you wish to help LaDonna in her time of need, you can visit her GoFundMe page.