A WIDOW has settled out of court following a seven-year legal battle after her husband's fatal heart condition was diagnosed as indigestion.

Joan Carney has been awarded more than £50,000 after it emerged that her husband Bob had been prescribed indigestion remedies for more than ten years after complaining of chest pain.

It wasn't until a post-mortem examination, fter the 61-year-old died from a heart attack, that long-standing heart problems were diagnosed,

Mrs Carney, 66, said: "This money can never bring Bob back, I would much rather he had been diagnosed with heart problems and been treated for it. He could have lived three or more years longer, rather than spending years in pain and being told it was just indigestion."

Her claim for compensation against Dr Barindra Nath Lahiri, then working at Monkwearmouth Health Centre, in Sunderland, was settled before being heard in court.

In a statement Dr Lahiri said: "Mr Carney had been a patient of mine for some time and I was saddened by his death. I would like to reiterate my sympathy to Mrs Carney."

Mrs Carney, a former teacher, of Cairns Road, Sunderland, said: "Both my solicitor and barrister have said that the level of compensation I have received vindicates my pursuing the case, but the whole process has been hell."