Dad says NHS let down cancer-hit son, 35, who was treated as 'druggie' before his death
Dad says NHS let down cancer-hit son, 35, who was treated as 'druggie' before his death
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A heartbroken dad believes his cancer-hit son was let down by the NHS and treated as a "druggie" before his tragic death. Andrew Shepherd said his son Anthony was treated for a lump in a Birmingham hospital during a spell in prison in 2017 and told his dad he had a "cancerous tumour." The 35-year-old had a number of seizures before any medical tests were carried out on his head and lungs. He passed away at his home - on Chillington Way, in Norton Heights - in March 2023.
Now an inquest has ruled Anthony died of natural causes. A police officer told the inquest: “Anthony became drug dependent after being sent to prison in 2017. He attended a Birmingham hospital during his prison time and he was prescribed methadone to help reduce his drug dependency. On leaving prison, he began to take monkey dust. In 2021, he only took methadone and cannabis. He was diagnosed with lung cancer and this had metastasised to his brain.”.
However, his dad Andrew believes his son was thought of as a "druggie" and not given "the required attention" by the NHS, StokeTrentLive reports. He heartbreakingly told the inquest: “He went to prison and he'd got a lump on his back and he was on medication for that. He had monkey dust twice as I know of, so he wasn't using, and he wasn't dependent.
“When he went to prison, he ended up being hospitalised because of his back. What Anthony told me, I haven't seen the medical records obviously, is that he said a cancerous tumour in his back. He was released from prison, came home feeling better and everything, and went to the doctor when he started getting headaches.
