A Greek heiress who was found dead a day after her family claims she was sent home from a London hospital, sent messages to a friend saying “nobody is checking up on me, nobody is coming” before she was discharged.
Marissa Laimou, 28, had been rushed to University College London Hospital (UCLH) by ambulance after she had visited a clinic on 10 September, complaining of dizziness, itching and a high temperature, relatives have said.
When she arrived at the hospital, tests were carried out on her by nurses, but four hours later, she was discharged with antibiotics, a family friend claimed.
However, the following day, her housekeeper found her lifeless in her bed at the townhouse she lived in with her parents in Knightsbridge, central London.
The coroner is investigating her death, but her family has said the official diagnosis given by doctors was “toxic effect of venom” caused by an “animal or insect bite”.
The family has now accused UCLH of failing in its care for the 28-year-old.
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A relative told MailOnline: “No doctor examined Marissa. Only the nurses saw her and did the blood tests, and passed the test to the doctor, and the doctor said you can be discharged, that’s all.
“They should not have let her go, definitely. If it was not so urgent, her oncologist would not have sent her in an ambulance, they would have said go in an Uber or go later. It was urgent. They didn’t address it with the serious way they should have done.”
The family friend, also speaking to MailOnline, revealed the messages sent by Laimou while she was at UCLH, where she had blood tests and was given a drip with fluids.
They said: “She was waiting, she sent some messages to her friend saying: ‘Nobody is checking up on me, nobody is coming, I don’t know where they are, I’m still itching, I feel dizzy, I don’t feel well’.”
As reported earlier this week, following her death, Laimou, also known as Lemos, had earlier survived breast cancer. It has since emerged, according to the family, that the clinic she went to on 10 September was Leaders in Oncology Care (LOC), where she had previously had chemotherapy.
Although born in the UK, she is part of the wealthy Lemos family, one of the biggest families in the Greek shipping industry. They are reportedly now planning to take legal action following the sudden death.
The tragic circumstances began after Laimou had recently returned from a summer holiday with her family on the Greek resort island of Porto Cheli, it has been reported.
She first started feeling unwell and recorded a high fever of 39C on the night of 9 September, but despite calling for an ambulance, she decided she would wait till the morning to seek further medical help.
The next day, still feeling unwell, she went to LOC, where medics, after taking blood tests, sent her to UCLH, the family say. After being discharged at 6.30pm on 10 September, she was found dead the next day, it is said.
Laimou was involved in theatre production after studying musical theatre in New York and going to the University of Arizona.
Earlier this year, she had played a leading role in a production of Romeo and Juliet in London and was reportedly preparing for a new production of Oliver.
Marissa’s great-aunt Chrysanthi told Parapolitika: “The entire family is shocked by the sudden death of the daughter of Diamantis and Bessie Laimou. She was a very kind girl, quiet, educated, cultured, modest and simple. She loved art and theatre – she was involved in theatre.”
The Inner West London Coroner’s Court confirmed to The Independent that the death of Laimou had been referred to the court. An inquest has yet to be opened.
A UCLH spokesperson said: “We were extremely sad to hear of the death of Marissa Lemos. We offer our deep condolences to her family and friends at this sad and difficult time.
“We have initiated an internal investigation, as is the normal process for an unexpected death. We await the result of the post-mortem, and we will provide any information required from the coroner’s court.”
The Independent has also contacted the LOC for comment.
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