'Anorexic' girl had brain tumour

Charlotte's weight loss was a symptom of her illness

A 12-year-old girl, whose family thought she suffered from anorexia, in fact died from a rare brain tumour which caused her to waste away, an inquest has heard.

Charlotte Collett, who weighed just three stone and nine pounds (23 kilograms) when she died, was found unconscious by her mother in her bedroom at their home in Well Road, East Cowes, Isle of Wight last July.

An inquiry had been launched and Charlotte's mother, Katrina, 47, arrested in connection with her death.

No charges were brought after medical reports showed Charlotte died as a result of a brain tumour.

The inquest heard that when Charlotte was taken to hospital, her sister and mother told paramedics she had been suffering from anorexia and had been bullied at school.

But the coroner returned a verdict of death by natural causes.

I conclude that nothing could have been done to change the course of events

John Matthews, coroner

Attempts to resuscitate Charlotte after she was found unwell in her bedroom were not successful, and she later died at St Mary's Hospital, Newport, Isle of Wight.

Dr Allen Anscombe, a Home Office pathologist, told the inquest in Newport that a post-mortem examination showed Charlotte died of pneumonia which had been brought about by a malignant and incurable brain tumour.

He said weight and appetite loss were symptoms of her condition.

'Final straw'

He said: "She was suffering from pneumonia at the time of her death, which was probably the final straw for a thin and emaciated girl suffering from a brain tumour."

Consultant neurosurgeon, Dr Owen Sparrow, told the inquest it was unlikely that a general practitioner or Charlotte's mother would have been able to diagnose the symptoms.

Even if her symptoms of double vision and weight loss had been recognised, it was unlikely that her lifespan could have been extended more than a matter of days or weeks if the tumour had been diagnosed a month before her death, he said.

Coroner John Matthews said: "I conclude that nothing could have been done to change the course of events."