In what is believed to be the first case of its kind, doctors at a private hospital in New Delhi recently removed a large “egg-shaped” cyst from a woman’s brain that was caused by a parasite, according to media reports.
A few months ago, 41-year-old Shanti Devi was taken to the Asian Institute of Medical Sciences in Faridabad, where she complained of a severe headache and was unable to stand or walk without support, the Business Standard reported.
Dr Mukesh Pandey, a senior neurosurgeon at the hospital, was quoted as saying, “The cyst — 8cm x 8cm in size and weighing around 200 grams — was found in the portion of the brain which controls speech and limb movement. Both functions were impaired prior to the surgery, but now there is significant improvement.”
Dr Pandey added: “We tested the foreign matter and discovered that it was caused by a parasite. Such parasites in the brain are known to cause soft balloon-like cysts in some patients, but this type of hard structure and size has never been reported in medical literature.”.
The patient has fully recovered since the four-hour operation.