Russia says many coronavirus patients died of other causes. Some disagree

Liubov Kashaeva wearing a protective mask sprays antiseptic while tending plants at her family's country house near the town of Chekhov in Moscow Region, Russia March 29, 2020. The death of Liubov Kashaeva, who earlier twice tested positive for the new coronavirus, was not counted in Russia's death toll and put down to the cancer she had suffered from. Picture taken March 29, 2020. Courtesy of Daria Kornilova/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Before she died in a Moscow hospital earlier this month, Liubov Kashaeva, 74, twice tested positive for the new coronavirus. Her death was not attributed to the virus, however. It was put down to the cancer she had been suffering from.

"The medical death certificate ... said she died of a malignant tumour," Kashaeva's daughter-in-law, Daria Kornilova, said. "Coronavirus was not mentioned anywhere."