August 2nd, 2007

A woman from the UK whose husband passed away from the asbestos related cancer mesothelioma has promised that she will fight to highlight the cases of other families and victims that suffer from this deadly cancer. Maureen Lee made the promise after receiving compensation following her husband's death from the cancer.

Her husband, Billy Lee, used to work around the London Docks, and dealt with movement and storage of cargo, which included bags of asbestos. He was diagnosed with the asbestos related cancer in 2004 after he had retired, and died nine months after the diagnosis was made.

His widow received one hundred and seventy seven thousand pounds (GBP) in compensation from the Port of London Authority where her late husband had been employed.

Maureen stated: "It was incredibly sad to see my husband go from being a relatively active man who enjoyed gardening and doing bits of DIY, to being a total invalid, completely dependent upon me, my son Mark, my daughter Mandy and her son Aaron, who together have been a tower of strength for me, as were literally hundreds of friends and family members who supported us.

"No amount of money can make up for the loss of the person you loved and shared your life with. Both Mandy and I now want to highlight the fact that people who find themselves in a similar situation to us should seek specialist help. If employers knew of the dangers of asbestos and did little or nothing to protect their employees, those employees and their families deserve justice."