Doctors find live roundworm inside woman’s brain: In a first-of-its-kind discovery in medical history, doctors in Australia found a live parasitic roundworm inside the brain of a 64-year-old woman. The 8-centimeter-long roundworm was later revealed to be a third-stage larva belonging to the Ophidascaris robertsi nematode species, according to The Guardian. The 64-year-old, hailing from south-eastern New South Wales, first started experiencing the symptoms back in 2021. She reportedly suffered from abdominal pain and diarrhoea, eventually leading to fever and night sweats, due to which the woman was admitted to the hospital. But her symptoms only worsened with time, and she started suffering from memory loss and depression, according to the reports.

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Amid her deteriorating symptoms, the patient was then referred to another hospital, leading to an MRI scan. Soon, the doctors decided to conduct surgery on the woman’s brain after her MRI scan hinted at issues in her brain. Although it was reportedly common for doctors to treat patients with brain infections, a brain with a worm living inside it was still far from a possibility for the professionals. The revelation left the doctors shocked as the case became one of a kind. Canberra Hospital’s infectious diseases physician, Dr Sanjaya Senanayake, briefed on the case. “Neurosurgeon certainly didn't go in there thinking they would find a wriggling worm,” the doctor was quoted as saying to The Guardian. The doctor also opened up on the reactions from the doctors after the surgery. “Neurosurgeons regularly deal with infections in the brain, but this was a once-in-a-career finding. No one was expecting to find that,” he was further quoted as saying.

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Considering the usual habitat of the parasite, the doctors reportedly concluded that the woman must have ingested it after either eating green vegetables or after coming in contact with indigenous grass. The worms are found inside a carpet python’s gastrointestinal system. The roundworm was later sent to a laboratory for further testing and examination.