Woman, 23, died from cancer after conspiracy theorist mum 'influenced' her to reject chemotherapy
A young woman who died after refusing cancer treatment was 'adversely influenced' by her conspiracy theorist mother, a coroner has ruled.
Paloma Shemirani passed away in July last year at the Royal Sussex County Hospital from an 'unsurvivable brain injury' after suffering a cardiac arrest, five days after she suddenly collapsed.
The 23-year-old, who had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in December 2023, suffered a fatal heart attack, which experts believe was triggered by her tumour.
She had refused conventional treatment options and instead used 'alternative' methods, such as conducting multiple coffee enemas a day.
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Medway Coroner’s Court in Maidstone was today (2 October) told that it is 'highly likely' that Paloma's mother, anti-vaccine activist and former NHS nurse Kate Shemirani, 'seeded some form of doubt' in her daughter's mind about the validity of her cancer diagnosis.
Coroner Catherine Wood concluded that the influence of Paloma's parents 'more than minimally' contributed to her death. Upon her diagnosis, doctors at Maidstone Hospital told the Cambridge graduate that she had an 80 per cent chance of recovery if she underwent chemotherapy.
Despite being 'estranged' from her mother at the time, Paloma declined and was then convinced to move back into the family home after she left the hospital.
Sheemirani then guided her daughter through an alternative 'treatment programme' which involved daily coffee enemas and a strict diet, the inquest heard.
Even when she headed to the hospital after collapsing, the mum claimed that Paloma was 'well' - which the coroner said she found 'incredible', as one medic said Paloma appeared as though she was 'was in the last stages of a very difficult disease'.
Ms Wood said it was 'egregious and incomprehensible' that the former nurse - who was struck off in 2021 for spreading Covid misinformation that 'put the public at a significant risk of harm' - did not seek further medical advice as her daughter's condition worsened.
Shemirani, 60, and Paloma's father, Dr Faramarz Shemirani - who is 'sympathetic' to his former wife's controversial views - tried to blame medical staff for their daughter's death.
The osteopath who assessed the 23-year-old when she arrived at the hospital last July, Nick Gosset, told the inquest that he had 'never seen' a lymphoid mass like Paloma's in his 43 years of practice.
He'd also previously told the court that his suggestions of going through 'normal medical channels' were 'dismissed'.
"It seems that if Paloma had been supported and encouraged to accept her diagnosis and considered chemotherapy with an open mind, she probably would have followed that course," the coroner said. "If approached with an open mind, Paloma would have chosen the chance to survive, and if she had undergone chemotherapy, she probably would have survived.
"Mrs Shemirani took a leading role in advising Paloma in respect of and facilitating access to alternative treatments."
The coroner said 'there is no doubt' that the 'large and bulky' mass was non-Hodgkin lymphoma, despite Shemirani questioning medical staff about the diagnosis given to her daughter.
Paloma's brother Sebastian and her twin brother Gabriel told the inquest they 'blame' their mother 'entirely' for their sister's death, while claiming that their mother 'obstructed' Paloma from receiving treatment.
Gabriel had hoped that her death would be classed as an unlawful killing, but despite recognising a breach in their duty of care, the coroner did not.
Ms Wood noted that the 'striking' dysfunction of the Shemirani family had been 'on display very public' throughout the inquest into Paloma's death.
Topics: UK News, Health, Cancer, Conspiracy Theory, Parenting
Olivia Burke