Woman complained of forgetfulness and depression before doctors pulled out an 8cm roundworm normally found in pythons
t was a fairly regular day on the ward for Canberra hospital infectious diseases physician Dr Sanjaya Senanayake, until a neurosurgeon colleague called him and said: “Oh my God, you wouldn’t believe what I just found in this lady’s brain – and it’s alive and wriggling.”
By 2022, her symptoms also included forgetfulness and depression, prompting a referral to Canberra hospital. An MRI scan of her brain revealed abnormalities requiring surgery.“But the neurosurgeon certainly didn’t go in there thinking they would find a wriggling worm,” Senanayake said. “Neurosurgeons regularly deal with infections in the brain, but this was a once-in-a-career finding. No one was expecting to find that.
“Canberra is a small place, so we sent the worm, which was still alive, straight to the laboratory of a CSIRO scientist who is very experienced with parasites,” Senanayake said. “He just looked at it and said, ‘Oh my goodness, this isis a roundworm usually found in pythons. The Canberra hospital patient marks the world-first case of the parasite being found in humans.
Senanayake said the patient needed to be treated for other larvae that might have invaded other parts of her body, such as the liver. But given no patient had ever been treated for the parasite before, care was taken. Some medications for example could trigger inflammation as the larvae died off. An inflammation can be harmful to organs such as the brain, so they also needed to administer medications to counteract any dangerous side-effects.
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