First in medical literature: A live worm was removed from the brain of a woman in Australia.

Scientists report that an 8 cm roundworm was removed from the brain of a woman in Australia, and this is a first in the medical literature.

The incident was recorded at a surgery in Canberra last year.

A "wire-like object" was removed from the damaged frontal lobe tissue of the British-born patient.

Doctor Sanjaya Senanayake, who was in the operating room at Canberra Hospital, said: "Everyone got the shock of their lives when the surgeon removed the living, writhing eight-centimetre-long light red worm from the brain."
Senanayake underlines that this is a new infection that has never been seen in a human before.

It is noted that the worm species in question is common in non-poisonous carpet pythons in Australia.

According to scientists, the woman contracted the parasite while collecting greenery around the lake near where she lived.

Australian doctor Mehrab Hossain, who specializes in parasites, said he suspected the woman had become an "accidental host" after eating herbs containing python feces.

What followed was what doctors call a "series of unusual symptoms."

Stomach ache, cough, night sweats and diarrhea were followed by increasing forgetfulness and worsening depression.

The woman who fell ill was hospitalized in January 2021.

In the subsequent scan, it was thought to be a parasitic lesion in the brain.

The source of the problem only became clear in June 2022, when a surgeon surgically removed the worm.

It is stated that the patient went down in medical history and recovered.

According to scientists, 30 new types of infections have emerged in the last 30 years. Three quarters of these were recorded as zoonotic, that is, infectious diseases that spread from animals to humans.

It is thought that the red parasite may have remained there for about two months.

Researchers warn that this case shows the extent of the danger of diseases and infections transmitted from animals.

Source: BBC