A man who turned to a “street-attached lifestyle" and took drugs and alcohol following a cancer diagnosis, had wanted to better himself, an inquest heard.
Adrian Lee Rumsby, formerly known as Adrian Bush, was found dead in the living room of his flat at Brahams Court off Howard Street South, Great Yarmouth, on August 11, 2022.
The 52-year-old, who was open about his struggles with mental ill health, was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
He was also treated for cancer in early 2022 after a malignant lymphoma was found in his neck. Despite successful treatment, he believed he would die, and his mental health deteriorated.
This triggered a relapse in his alcohol dependency, and he turned to “street drugs”, but he had been receiving support from several services including mental health providers and the charity Change Grow Live.
Following concerns for his welfare, after not being seen or heard from for more than a week, emergency services did a welfare check. After forcing entry into his flat, they found Mr Rumsby’s body.
A senior mental health nurse told the inquest he was “shocked” to hear of his death.
From December 2017, the nurse had visited him weekly and said during their last face-to-face meeting, on July 28, 2022, he looked “well-presented and was in good humour”.
He said: “He wanted to stop using alcohol and drugs and was benefitting from the Change Grow Live advice.”
He added that he was “distancing himself” from negative aspects of his life and was looking forward to making “positive changes”.
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Mr Rumsby’s family attended the inquest on Friday, March 10 at Norfolk’s Coroner’s Court at County Hall, Norwich.
The senior coroner for Norfolk, Jacqueline Lake, recorded an “open conclusion” into his death, stating the medical cause as hanging.
Mr Rumsby was born on May 22, 1970, in Great Yarmouth, and was unemployed.
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