Coroner's Finding: Bessell, Lynne

67y · Female·metastatic carcinoma of the colon

Lynne Maree Bessell, aged 67, died of metastatic colon cancer at North West Regional Hospital on 13 March 2016. She had a history of bipolar affective disorder managed at the Spencer Clinic and was subject to a mental health treatment order at the time of death. Her cancer had recurred despite initial successful surgery (right hemicolectomy in 2013), and she declined chemotherapy, opting for alternative prescribed medications. Following deterioration in her mental state and difficulty managing medications at home, she was readmitted to the Spencer Clinic in November 2015. The coroner found that care, supervision and treatment provided by the hospital and Spencer Clinic was appropriate and of satisfactory standard. No clinical errors or preventable failures were identified.