A West Sussex woman died from complications following an operation, an inquest was told.

Maureen Romaniuk, 46, of Clarence Road, Horsham, was diagnosed with colonic cancer just days before she died in Worthing Hospital.

She was transferred to the hospital from Crawley Hospital after her condition deteriorated.

An inquest into her death at Worthing Hospital yesterday, was told Mrs Romaniuk, a care assistant, had two operations shortly before she died on July 31, this year.

Her husband Peter, who now lives in Brighton Road, Horsham, said doctors had initially thought she had irritable bowel syndrome when she first started feeling ill with severe sickness and stomach pains.

It was only when she was admitted to Crawley Hospital on July 25, that they realised the true cause of her illness and she had an emergency operation to remove the cancer.

After the first operation she appeared to be getting better but her health then rapidly deteriorated.

Consultant surgeon at Crawley Hospital Miss Imelda Donnellan said: "Five days after the operation she had become breathless and looked unwell.

"X-rays showed she had gas leaking from the bowel causing her to be sick."

Miss Romaniuk was rushed back into surgery to repair the leak but she developed peritonitis and respiratory failure.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, West Sussex assistant deputy coroner Martin Milward, said: "While I am quite satisfied that the cause was natural because of the cancer, it followed an emergency operation to cure that problem.

"As to whether she died as a result of that, we will never know and the right conclusion should be accidental death. It is a tragic death of a relatively young lady in unusual circumstances."