Why dont you ask society to take the phrase out of circulation?
I hope your friend has a Refuah Shelayma but theres nothing wrong with the phrase, and nothing wrong with it being here. This is not a forum dedicated to terminal illness.
In yiddish we say “chalish”(ing) instead of “dying” in this sense and although it doesn’t translate properly, it is definitely more appropriate if you think about it. And there’s no need to add to someones pain, intentional or not, just because the rest of the world doesn’t seem to care. We are rachmunim after all.