A CANCER sufferer wearing a headscarf was distraught after she was racially abused on a visit to Weymouth.

Eve Spence, who is being treated for skin cancer, was wearing a scarf on her head to protect her from the sun when she said a passing motorist called her a ‘F****** Muslim’.

Retired teacher Mrs Spence, 65, said she was shocked and stunned by the outburst.

It happened in the middle of the afternoon in Old Castle Road as Mrs Spence walked back from Sandsfoot Beach.

A white middle-aged man, who had older children in the car, was driving towards the beach when he shouted out of the window, Mrs Spence said.

She was staying with friends in the resort and is now back home in Worcestershire.

Mrs Spence said: “I have had malignant melanomas removed so I have to be very careful in the sun. I was walking back from the beach and it was really hot. I had my scarf on my head and my cap on.

“A car went by and a man said these words which I was completely shocked by. I turned round and realised it had been directed at me.

"I was in shock. I suppose I should’ve confronted him but I walked on stunned by what had happened. I love Weymouth and nothing like this has happened to me before.”

She added: “It made me think, how would I have felt if I was a Muslim? There are people who are having to suffer this kind of abuse everyday.”

Mrs Spence said she did not report the incident.

Incidents of hate crime and racial abuse have been reported around the country in the wake of the EU referendum result.

It was reported earlier this month how a couple with Down Syndrome were accosted in Bridport and told by a man in the wake of the Leave vote that ‘We can now get rid of people like you’.

Dorset Police said that although the force had not seen an increase in hate crime since the referendum, officers had assured residents it will not be tolerated.

Mrs Spence had been staying with her friend Steve Elsworth in Weymouth.

Mr Elsworth said: “I’ve lived in Weymouth for 25 years and never come across an incident like this before.

“When Eve got back she was shaken and distraught.

“I could only apologise to her, on behalf of everyone who lives in Weymouth – we’re not like that; we’re tolerant, friendly, and we welcome visitors from wherever they come.”

Mr Elsworth added: “It has made me angry and I wish someone had taken the car registration so we could report it and show that this will not be tolerated.

“If anyone else comes across this unpleasant individual in Old Castle Road and witnesses a similar incident, please take down the car registration number and report him to the police.”