August 29, 2023: Australian doctors discovered a live parasitic roundworm measuring 8 centimetres within the brain of a woman who was suffering symptoms of memory loss and depression. This case has been discovered for the first time in the World.

According to some reports, a 64-year-old woman hailing from south-eastern New South Wales was first admitted to a hospital in late January 2021 after suffering three weeks of abdominal pain and diarrhoea, followed by a constant dry cough, fever, and night sweats. Later, her symptoms also included memory loss and depression. Then she was admitted to Canberra Hospital and an MRI scan of her brain was done which revealed abnormalities and required surgery.

Dr. Sanjaya Senanayake, a Canberra Hospital infectious diseases physician, said, "Neurosurgeons certainly didn't go in there thinking they would find a wriggling worm. Neurosurgeons regularly deal with infections in the brain, but this was a once-in-a-career finding. No one was expecting to find that”.

Recognising as a third-stage larva belonging to the Ophidascaris robertsi nematode species, this medical case is referred to as a unique event in medical history. This parasitic roundworm inhabits the gastrointestinal systems of carpet pythons native to the Australian state of New South Wales.