A Man Died After His Parasitic Worm Got Cancer
Nov 5, 2015 18:09:27 GMT -6
Nugget, Mystic Wanderer, and 3 more like this
Post by kdog on Nov 5, 2015 18:09:27 GMT -6
Well, this is a tad bit unusual. Talk about your bad luck !
link
An HIV-positive Colombian man has died of cancer that began inside his tapeworm. His tumors were not made up of his own cells, but those of the parasitic worm that invaded his gut. This rare and unique situation is thought to be the first known to medicine whereby tumors have developed as a result of parasite-derived cancerous cells having spread and taken hold throughout a human host.
Described in the New England Journal of Medicine, the patient was a 41-year-old man who, back in early 2013, had been suffering fatigue, a fever, cough and weight loss for several months. He was diagnosed with HIV seven years earlier but did not take his medication. Consequently, his white blood cell (CD4) count was dangerously low and blood samples were loaded with virus particles. Fecal analysis revealed that he was also infected with the dwarf tapeworm Hymenolepis nana.
Described in the New England Journal of Medicine, the patient was a 41-year-old man who, back in early 2013, had been suffering fatigue, a fever, cough and weight loss for several months. He was diagnosed with HIV seven years earlier but did not take his medication. Consequently, his white blood cell (CD4) count was dangerously low and blood samples were loaded with virus particles. Fecal analysis revealed that he was also infected with the dwarf tapeworm Hymenolepis nana.
Oh my! That is scary stuff!
