Doctors thought woman, 77, had cancer... then they discovered she had a ... trends now
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A woman in China died from a rare brain-eating amoeba after doctors initially mistook it for cancer.
The unnamed patient, 77, visited her local hospital in 2022 after complaining of dizziness, confusion and difficulty speaking for several days.
Doctors thought she was suffering from a brain tumor because her scans showed a lesion.
However, a lumbar puncture - when a needle is inserted into the spine to test fluids - revealed she was infected with Balamuthia mandrillaris, a single-celled organism that spreads to the brain and kills nine in 10 patients.
Doctors highlighted an area on the patient's brain scans that they at first thought was a tumor. However, it turned out to be a brain-eating amoeba
Balamuthia mandrillaris (B mandrillaris) is typically found in dust, soil, and water, and is thought to cause infections when it comes into contact with open wounds or being
