A 62-year-old man died as a direct result of being given contaminated blood decades earlier, a coroner has ruled.

Mr Dymond, who lived the final years of his life in Broadstairs, was one of thousands of haemophiliacs to be given infected blood during transfusions in the 1970s and 80s.

The ruling at the conclusion of an inquest last week has come as a victory for the former Russian teacher's widow who has tirelessly campaigned for her husband's cause of death to be recognised.

"It's a victory as the verdict is superb," Su Gorman said.

"It's what I have fought for, and it is what Steve fought for and wanted.

"I'm very pleased the death certificate will say the true cause.

"The contaminated blood caused hepatitis, which resulted in so much damage to his health and caused his death.

"The fact it says it was caused by contaminated blood is a victory. This was blood given to him by the NHS, it should never have happened.

The conclusion of the five-day inquest heard how Mr Dymond died of liver failure caused by hepatitis acquired from contaminated blood.

Labelled by former prime minister Boris Johnson as the worst treatment disaster in the history of the health service, the blood transfusion scandal resulted in thousands being diagnosed with HIV and hepatitis C.

Mr Dymond was diagnosed with the latter in 1994 following unexplained symptoms of severe mood swings, debilitating fatigue and muscle pain.

The symptoms were caused by the use of a contaminated Factor VIII blood product - described at the time to Mr Dymond as a "wonder drug".

Though, it was in fact given to the NHS - despite known risks of infection - from people who were paid to donate, including prisoners and drug addicts.

Following years of "brain fog" and with the infection having taken a drastic toll on his life, Mr Dymond was eventually freed of the disease following a trial of new medication.

However, the hepatitis had dealt irreparable damage to his organs and he had developed liver cancer.

Mr Dymond died in 2018 at the age of 62 at Margate's QEQM Hospital - leaving behind his wife Su Gorman.

An inquest into the scholar's death resumed last week and concluded following a five-day hearing in Maidstone.

Having likely been given the contaminated blood in 1976 at a hospital in Devon, Mr Dymond spent about 20 years of his life not knowing what he was suffering from.

Speaking at the inquest, Mrs Gorman recalled: "When I first met him, he was gentle, funny and highly intelligent.

"Over a period of about 10 years he became utterly impossible - he was aggressive and rude.

"If we had an argument he wouldn't speak to me for six days. It was a complete character change.

"We had to live with it, it was like having a third person in our marriage. This other person would come and replace Steve - that's how bad it was, he was like two different people."

Survivors of the infected blood scandal are set to finally be given £100,000 compensation payments, the government pledged earlier this summer.

About 2,400 patient deaths have been caused by the contaminated blood, with patients infected with either HIV or hepatitis C.

A public inquiry, announced in 2018, has taken evidence from more than 5,000 witnesses and is set to conclude next year.

Sadly, for Mr Dymond - who was a long-term campaigner fighting for justice - he will not be able to see its conclusion.

A statement written by Mr Dymond prior to his death was read to the coroner's court.

In the statement, he stressed how he found it hard to concentrate throughout his career, and he continually felt like he was "living life with his shoelaces tied together".

It is thought he was first treated with Factor VIII for his mild haemophilia in 1976 after sustaining a large bruise on his leg.

"It was after receiving this treatment when I noticed a change in myself during my final year of university," the statement read.

"The year was a complete muddle for me, I kept experiencing brain fog. I made silly mistakes which were very unlike me.

"I was extremely fatigued."

The former tutor explained how Factor VIII was described to him as a "wonder drug", and he was not made aware of any potential risks involved.

In 1984, he went to an A&E in Lewisham after sustaining a bruise on his hand.

"I was treated by an A&E registrar who took a bottle of Factor VIII off the shelf and treated me. My bruise was completely gone within an hour," the statement continued.

"The following day I was told 'they should never have done this to you' as Factor VIII was only kept in stock for emergency incidents involving severe haemophiliacs.

"I believe the Factor VII guidelines at the time said it should not be used on children or mild haemophiliacs, such as myself."

In 1986, My Dymond attempted to take his own life by crashing his car but the vehicle ran out of fuel.

"I was no longer able to cope with my constant fear of failure and confusion as to why I was feeling why I felt," he wrote in his statement.