A pathologist’s report on the late Member of Parliament for Ejisu, John Ampontuah Kumah, has confirmed that he died of natural causes.
The report of the late Deputy Minister for Finance’s autopsy, conducted at the Police Hospital in Accra, also ruled out the presence of any harmful chemicals, such as poison, in his system.
“Blood and urine samples tested for alcohol, common drugs, and poisons were negative,” the toxicology section of the report, intercepted by GhanaWeb, stated.
Earlier, GhanaWeb had reported that the MP, before his demise, suffered from multiple myeloma, which is a type of blood cancer for which he was undergoing treatment.
Details of the autopsy addressed to the Coroner at the Kaneshie District Magistrate Court and dated Monday, March 11, 2024, determined the cause of his death to be due to “congestive heart failure,” “severe anaemia,” and “underlying multiple myeloma.”
According to a family source, the report was officially presented to the family on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, and they are studying it while arrangements are being made to obtain the death certificate.
Following the death of the Deputy Minister for Finance on Thursday, March 7, 2024, multiple reports attributed his death to poisoning.
However, a source close to the MP disclosed to GhanaWeb that he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in early 2023 and was undergoing treatment.
Family sources revealed after the MP’s demise that he had earlier returned from Germany when his condition deteriorated, leading to his death.
Multiple myeloma is a type of cancer that affects plasma cells, which are a type of white blood cell responsible for producing antibodies to help fight infections.
In multiple myeloma, abnormal plasma cells grow uncontrollably in the bone marrow, crowding out healthy blood cells. This can lead to weakened bones, anaemia, kidney damage, and suppressed immune function.
GhanaWeb’s source confirmed that the MP was going through treatment at the University Hospital of Erlangen in Germany for his condition, which at one point led to a fracture in his left arm.
According to the source, the MP was scheduled to start active treatment in Germany on March 12, 2024, but was discharged against the doctor’s advice so he could attend the Independence Day celebrations on March 6, 2024, before returning for the treatment.
Following a deterioration in his condition, the MP was being transported from Kumasi to Accra when he died midway. He was expected to be flown back to Germany for medical attention.
