Widow questions inquest over husband's death
A WIDOW questioned an inquest why her husband's fatal lung cancer was not diagnosed even though he had several X-rays.
It was only after retired building engineer John Parker's death that the pulmonary carcinoma in the centre of his chest was discovered by a pathologist.
Gloucestershire coroner Alan Crickmore recorded a verdict that Mr Parker, of Churchill Grove, Newtown, Tewkesbury, died at Cheltenham General Hospital on February 26 this year from natural causes. He was 77.
The Gloucester inquest heard Mr Parker developed breathing difficulties 18 months before his death and, in due course, he was diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
He had been complaining of chest pain in February when he was in Cheltenham General Hospital a week before his death and was being treated for pneumonia.
When pathologist Dr Linmarie Ludeman gave evidence that Mr Parker died of cancer, his widow, Shirley, asked: "He had loads of X-rays. Why didn't anything show up? No one knew he had cancer."
Dr Ludeman said the tumour was very close to the heart in the middle of the chest and, because X-rays show only shadows, the cancer could have been obscured.
She also pointed out the kind of cancer which killed Mr Parker was "very aggressive" and grew "quite rapidly".
In a statement to the inquest, Mrs Parker said her husband spent many years on building sites as an engineer.
She could clearly recall when asbestos-related illnesses were in the news headlines and her husband told her his employers had never suggested he should wear a mask, she said.
It was about 18 months before his death that his health started deteriorating and medical investigations began, she stated.
The inquest heard that in January he was in Cheltenham General Hospital and was treated for a chest infection.
On January 22 he was transferred to Tewkesbury Hospital for rehabilitation but was re-admitted to Cheltenham General three days later with chest pains.
Later he was returned to Tewkesbury Hospital but had to go back to Cheltenham again on February 16.
Giving her post-mortem examination report, Dr Ludeman said Mr Parker was found to have a low level of asbestos fibres in the lungs – insufficient to link his death with exposure to the mineral.
"On balance, I don't think asbestos has caused this cancer," she said.
She reassured Mrs Parker that a chest drain tube placed in Mr Parker shortly before his death had not contributed to his death. It appeared to be correctly placed and had not played a part, she said.
The coroner said: "His problems were not fully diagnosed during his lifetime. It was only after death that Dr Ludeman was able to discover the cause of his death – primary pulmonary small cell carcinoma.
"It was not picked up during life because of its position and aggressive growth. There is no evidence that the chest drain contributed to his demise."
Comments
by ed, Scotland
Saturday, September 12 2009, 4:38PM
“I know how you must be feeling - my husband took ill short of breath-pluresy,then pnuemonia,then a collapsed lung , then diagnosed as non small cell cancer, the lesser of the two cancers.
we were told it was treatable from our local hospital.
Appointment made at wester-edinburgh received treatments
then after various episodes he died 11 weeks later very suddenly on 22/01/09 (of which he spent 50% in hospital ) I found out later that he only had 10-15 out of 100 survival rate.
yet we were never told this, my husband & I never knew he was dying the shock is unbearable - I never got the chance to say my goodbyes, hospital staff took that right away from me I'm so angry.my husband was only 66 and never ill in his life, we never had children, he died without leaving a will (he was always going too but never got round to it) is this the action of someone who was going to die - the hospitals response was "he was well informed of his prognosis" which I don't believe - what can i do, its their word against mine, and iwas deprived of 50% of the time he had left - I feel so guilty I let my husband down, and very angry at our "health service"
what can I do.?”