A coroner has ruled that a Cambridge graduate who died after refusing chemotherapy for non-Hodgkin lymphoma was “adversely influenced” by her conspiracy theorist mother. Paloma Shemirani, 23, died in July 2024 despite doctors giving her an 80% chance of recovery with treatment.
At an inquest in Maidstone, Kent, coroner Catherine Wood stated that the influence of Paloma’s parents, Kay and Faramarz Shemirani, “more than minimally” contributed to her death. “If Paloma had been supported and encouraged to accept her diagnosis and considered chemotherapy with an open mind she probably would have followed that course,” Wood said.
Kay Shemirani, known online as Kate Shemirani, is a former nurse who was struck off in 2021 for spreading Covid-19 misinformation. Consultant haematologist Arunodaya Mohan told the inquest that Kay expressed “concerns” about treatment and that Paloma later declined chemotherapy without a specific reason, despite initially agreeing to a steroid course and PET scan.
Paloma had been estranged from her mother until her cancer diagnosis, after which she moved back in with her. In high court statements, Paloma said she declined chemotherapy partly due to her “background in natural healing” and was “delighted” with alternative treatments. Her twin brother Gabriel told the inquest: “I blame my mother entirely for my sister’s death.”
