'Poor science' led to WA woman's death

A coroner has found that "misinformation and poor science" led to the death of a Perth woman who refused conventional treatment for her cancer.

Penelope Dingle died in August 2005 after initially refusing surgery for rectal cancer, opting to be treated with alternative remedies instead.

The 45-year-old underwent emergency surgery in October 2003 to remove a life-threatening tumour but the cancer had already spread to other parts of her body.

Delivering his findings on Friday, West Australian Coroner Alastair Hope said homeopath Francine Scrayen "was not a competent health professional" and had given "dangerous advice" to Mrs Dingle when treating her.

He also said Mrs Dingle's husband Peter, a prominent toxicologist, was "a victim of his own misinformation" and had "no qualifications in health and wellness".

Dr Dingle, who was a guest presenter on the ABC's Can We Help? program, had written papers arguing that chemotherapy was ineffective in treating cancer.

The coroner also recommended that doctors William Barnes and Igor Tabrizian, who Mrs Dingle consulted, be referred to the Medical Board of WA over their conduct.

Mr Hope said Dr Barnes' suggestion Mrs Dingle use vitamin C and Carnivora to potentially stop the tumour growing and Dr Tabrizian's failure to examine her properly was enough reason to refer them to the board.

But the coroner said the decisions on treatment were ultimately made by Mrs Dingle herself.

He said she conducted her own research and made her own decisions not to have chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery until it was too late because she was told she would be infertile after the treatment.

Mrs Dingle's main doctor, Professor Cameron Platell, was praised by the coroner as an "excellent" medical practitioner.

Mr Hope said Dr Platell had given "reliable and clear information" but Mrs Dingle had been "influenced by misinformation and bad science" from others.

Giving his recommendations, the coroner said homeopathic treatments should not be outlawed but nor should they be legitimised.

But he recommended federal and state health authorities review their legislation regarding complementary and alternative treatments.

During the coronial inquiry Dr Platell gave evidence that when Mrs Dingle was rushed to Fremantle Hospital for urgent surgery, "she looked almost dead" and weighed just 35kg.

He said Mrs Dingle had sunken eyes and was in severe pain as a result of a complete bowel obstruction.

Her bowel was almost at the point of splitting open and she would have died within 24 hours if she had not had the emergency surgery, Dr Platell said.

Mr Hope found that if Mrs Dingle had taken Dr Platell's advice, she could have reduced her pain considerably.

He said that if she had not spent a year seeking the advice of Mrs Scrayen rather than seeing a doctor, she may have survived.

Outside the court, one of Mrs Dingle's sisters, Toni Brown, said the family wanted to read the coroner's report before commenting.

"We are very satisfied with the process of investigation that the court has conducted," she said.