Asbestos blamed for former Worthing nurse’s death

Marjorie Maguire died on December 7 at her home in Downview Road.

At an inquest into her death on Tuesday (February 26) assistant coroner for West Sussex Joanne Andrews recorded a verdict that the 86-year-old died of an industrial disease after being exposed to the deadly dust whilst working at a hospital in London.

The inquest heard how Mrs Maguire worked at Marks and Spencer whilst training to be a nurse in the 1950s. She spent several years working as a nurse before having to give up the profession after developing an allergy to penicillin.

She went on to become a missionary and spent several years in France and Belgium spreading the word of Christianity and selling Christian literature, the inquest heard.

Mrs Maguire later returned to England and became a receptionist before running a bookshop.

In evidence read out by coroners’ officer Geoff Charnock the inquest heard Mrs Maguire began feeling unwell in November 2017. After several tests she was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a form of lung cancer caused by exposure asbestos.

She died in the care of St Barnabas House Hospice staff at her home on December 7.

The inquest heard how it was believed she had been exposed to asbestos whilst working at a hospital in London in the 1960s.

Mrs Andrews recorded a verdict of industrial disease as the cause of Mrs Maguire’s death.