A MAN who died of cancer was killed 'simply by earning a living'.
Alfred Nother, 84, breathed in deadly asbestos dust while working at Portsmouth dockyard for 15 years, an inquest heard.
After being diagnosed with the fatal condition mesothelioma, which has no cure, Mr Nother's battle lasted only a year.
He j
oined Portsmouth dockyard in 1938 as an apprentice engine fitter. There the deadly dust was rife.
Mr Nother went through a biopsy and regular medical and palliative treatment before his death at his own home in Tregaron Avenue, Portsmouth, on June 23 last year. In the last six weeks of his life he suffered from recurrent chest infections.
At an inquest into his death held at Portsmouth Coroner's Court in the Guildhall, Mr Nother's doctor noted that life for his patient over the last six months of his life had become increasingly difficult.
A post mortem examination showed the cancer had spread further than doctors had anticipated. Asbestos particles were also found in his lungs.
Mr Nother, a father of two and grandfather of four, is sorely missed by his family, said daughter-in-law Gillian Nother.
She added: 'He was a lovely person, a wonderful father and husband. He was just a very special man.'
Mr Nother had received compensation for his disease in his lifetime.
Portsmouth coroner David Horsley recorded a death as the result of industrial disease. He said: 'Mr Nother spent 15 years in the dockyard as an apprentice and then qualified engine fitter. From the medical evidence I have, the lifetime diagnosis seems correct. There's clear history of asbestos exposure going way back.
'I have no hesitation in recording that Mr Nother died of an industrial disease.
'It's so common in Portsmouth – it's so unfair that people contract this disease simply by earning a living.
'They live a healthy life and it strikes them down after retirement.
'It's an increasing concern.'
The full article contains 328 words and appears in NS-City newspaper.
