A 'strong' cancer patient with a 'beaming smile' wrote a final goodbye message as he ended his own life, an inquest has heard. Marc Talbot, from Reddish, had 'seemed himself' the day before taking a fatal mix of drugs according to his family.
The 36-year-old went to the pub the night before he died, and his family believed he had been sleeping the following day, South Manchester Coroners Court heard on Wednesday (October 12). But Mr Talbot was found dead in his room, before police discovered he had messaged someone with 'notice of intent to take his own life'.
The court heard that Mr Talbot, who was born in Withington, had been diagnosed with myeloid leukaemia in July 2018. He had been under the care of a haematologist at The Christie and had previously secured a match for a stem cell donor.
Lynda Talbot, Mr Talbot's mum, described the impact the diagnosis had on her son. She said: "It was a massive shock for him because he was a very fit, young man. He went to the gym every day.
"But he was determined that nothing was going to bring him down, that he would fight it and recover, he would never give up. He still had a smile on his face and enjoyed a lot of things."
Mr Talbot, who had worked in waste management, hadn't spoken about his feelings in the days leading up to his death on April 12 this year. The day before his death, he had tea with his mum and 'seemed himself', the court heard.
He went out to the pub in the evening and came back home. On the following day, his brother returned home from work and thought Mr Talbot had been asleep.
"Marc would sleep most of the day anyway," his mum said. "If he didn't sleep he would lie in bed and watch TV. He would come down when he was hungry, have something to eat, get ready and go out."
Yet on this occasion Mr Talbot was not asleep. Paramedics were called out to the house, before North West Ambulance Service contacted Greater Manchester Police.
Detective Inspector Chris Horsfield, from GMP, told the court that officers arrived at the Bower Street property at around 6.30pm. He explained that officers found no evidence of anything suspicious or any third-party involvement.
Police found empty snap bags in the room, along with medication. They recovered Mr Talbot's phone, which included a 'goodbye message' sent at 3.29am on April 12, which was interpreted by GMP as a 'notice of intent to take his own life'.
A toxicology report found excessive levels of cocaine in Mr Talbot's system, along with other excessive levels of two painkillers. His medical cause of death was given as combined drug toxicity leading to cardiac arrest.
Mr Talbot's mum described her son as a 'strong, young man who would not let anything bring him down', who also loved animals and watching TV. She added: "What he went through, most people his age would have crumbled, but he just carried on and still had a big beaming smile on his face."
Alison Mutch, senior coroner for south Manchester, described Mr Talbot as a 'much loved son and brother'. "What a very, very sad and tragic situation to deal with for such a young man," she said.
"It's clear that as a family you are left bereft by his loss, and I appreciate particularly for you Mrs Talbot, to lose a child is just so difficult to deal with." Ms Mutch concluded that Mr Talbot's death was suicide.
She added: "It's clear that he had not given any indication to his family that he was living with of how he was feeling at that time. I'm really sorry that he did not reach out to you that night, because it's really clear that as a family you would have been there for him."
In a tribute to Mr Talbot, his partner of seven years Stacey Smith said: "Marc will always be the best person in my life. There will never be anyone quite like him. He was kind, hilariously funny and he loved with his whole heart. He had struggled to come to terms with becoming unwell and the side effects from undergoing a stem cell transplant following failed first line treatments for chronic myeloid leukaemia.
"I am devastated to learn the conclusion of the inquest. He was loved by so many people. He always had a smile on his face however his last few photographs on his social media had caused me some concern as it was visible something was wrong.
"The week prior to his death I had suggested for him to get some help to which he replied that he didn’t feel that he needed any help. If he would have indicated to me that he felt that he had to take his own life I would have immediately sought the appropriate help that he clearly needed.
"The stem cell transplant had been a success and other health issues that followed on from the transplant were becoming more manageable. He was really pleased that the consultant was seeing improvements and he was gradually getting better.
"Marc was my best friend and my biggest supporter. His kindness knew no end and his love for his animals was truly heartwarming. He deserved nothing that life had thrown at him and always remained optimistic about the future in spite of it all."
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