A WIDOW has told of her grief after her husband of more than 50 years died from asbestos exposure.

Frank Stoodley, of Crag View, Kendal, was diagnosed with mesothelioma, the type of cancer most commonly associated with asbestos exposure, last year and died in Westmorland General Hospital in March.

Speaking after an inquest ruled the 71-year-old great-granddad died of an industrial disease, his heartbroken widow Patricia said: "It's an awful disease. It makes me angry that it has stolen the rest of our lives.

"Right before he died he said I thought we were going to grow old together. He died in March and I have just been treading water since."

Mrs Stoodley said a compensation claim is being pursued against Lockheed Hydraulic Brake, which made brake systems, where, the inquest heard, it was likely Mr Stoodley came into contact with asbestos when he worked there in the 1960s.

Mr Stoodley, who had six children, seven grand-children and nine great-children, was born in Carlisle and had lived in Ambleside.

As a teenager he moved to Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, where he worked in a bakery, a tailors and a upholsters before, in 1964, he began working at Lockheed.

His job was to keep the stores tidy.

In a letter written by solicitors on behalf of Mr Stoodley before he died, he claimed there were no dust extractors and he was not warned of any dangers of asbestos.

He left the firm in 1966 and went on to work at other businesses in the area before being made redundant and moving to Kendal in 1998, where he and his wife ran Sundowner Stores on Kirkbarrow until his retirement in 1993.

In spring 2014 he complained to his doctor at Captain French Surgery, Kendal, of breathlessness.

A chest x-ray revealed his right lung was 'encased by a tumour' and it was advised that only palliative care was suitable, the inquest heard.

He underwent bouts of chemotherapy in the summer and also had a chest drain inserted into this lung - but his condition declined over autumn and winter.

He then developed a chest infection after a fall at home on March 8 and was admitted into Westmorland General Hospital. He died six days later.

Robert Chapman, assistant corner for Cumbria, said: "Mesothelioma is a horrible disease and virtually always arises through asbestos exposure."

Mr Stoodley worked as a trustee of Animal Concern Cumbria and was chairman of the South Lakes branch until ill health forced him to retire.

l The UK Asbestos Training Association, which has launched a national campaign to highlight the dangers of asbestos, says round 5,000 people a year still die from asbestos related illnesses in the UK.