8 cm long live worm found in woman’s brain in Australia

In a shocking medical discovery, Australian doctors recently found an 8 cm long-lived parasitic roundworm inside a woman’s brain. What makes this even more astonishing is that this type of worm is typically found inside snakes and kangaroos.

A 64-year-old woman from south-eastern New South Wales had been experiencing troubling symptoms of memory loss and depression. Her journey to this discovery began when she was admitted to her local hospital in late January 2021. She had been suffering from three weeks of abdominal pain, diarrhea, a constant dry cough, fever, and night sweats.

When doctors decided to take a closer look with an MRI scan, they were met with an unexpected surprise. The scan revealed an unusual abnormality in the frontal part of her brain.

Further investigation revealed an eight-centimeter (three-inch) roundworm known as Ophidascaris robertsi.

What makes this case even more remarkable is that this type of roundworm has never been found in humans before. This is a first-of-its-kind discovery in the world.

Researchers suspect that the woman may have contracted the infection while gathering edible shrubs near her home. These shrubs might have been contaminated with parasitic larvae, which likely came from snake feces.