Ophidascaris robertsi, an eight-centimeter-long parasitic worm, has been found in the brain of a woman in Canberra. Australia, Australian scientist, reports Reuters.
Identified by scientists as a roundworm common in carpet pythons, it was discovered last year in the brain of a 64-year-old woman who underwent surgery after complaining of abdominal pain, forgetfulness and depression.
The study on the case was published this Monday in the journal New infectious diseases and suggests that the patient may have contracted this parasite while looking for wild herbs that could be contaminated with python droppings.
“When you operate on someone’s brain and take a biopsy, you never expect to find anything alive,” Sanjaya Senanayake, one of the study’s authors, told the agency, adding that while researchers are familiar with parasites in humans, a worm of this size had never been observed in humans.
“(It was) definitely something we will never forget,” he stressed.
Despite the fact that the woman has already been discharged from the hospital, she continues to be under the supervision of doctors, “because this is an unusual case on many levels.”