DHAKA: A California man is recovering after he had a live tapeworm removed from his brain during emergency surgery.

Luis Ortiz was admitted to a hospital in Napa with what he called the worst headache of his life.

In a brain scan, neurosurgeon Soren Singel discovered the larvae of a tapeworm and told Ortiz he had about 30 minutes to live, reports the BBC.

The tapeworm grew inside a cyst that cut off circulation and water flow to the rest of his brain.

"I stood up and then I threw up," said Mr Ortiz. "The doctor pulled it out and he said it was still wiggling, and I'm like 'Ugh, that doesn't sound too good.'"

The US Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports larval cysts in the brain - neurocysticercosis - develop after a person swallows microscopic eggs passed in the faeces of a person who has an intestinal pork tapeworm.

Once inside the body, those eggs hatch and the worms can make their way to the brain. The CDC says approximately 1,000 people per year are hospitalised for neurocysticercosis and removal of the larvae.

BDST: 1917 HRS, NOV 05, 2015
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