Deceased
Gladys Yvonne Melhuish
Demographics
69y, female
Date of death
2015-04-13
Finding date
2016-10-25
Cause of death
Complications of a probable bowel malignancy
AI-generated summary
A 69-year-old woman with schizophrenia, intellectual disability, and multiple comorbidities died from complications of probable bowel malignancy. In October 2014, regional lymphadenopathy and bowel thickening were identified; colonoscopy was not pursued due to concerns about distress and medication destabilisation. In March 2015, abdominal imaging revealed a caecal/ascending colon mass suggestive of carcinoma. The patient and her sister declined further investigation or active treatment. She received palliative care at a specialist cancer centre and died peacefully 10 days after admission. The coroner found natural causes. Clinically, the case highlights challenges in investigating bowel pathology in vulnerable patients with mental illness and the importance of informed decision-making in palliative contexts, though the decision to defer colonoscopy in October 2014 appears reasonable given the patient's circumstances.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
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