Two large worm-like cysts, the first of their kind ever reported in China, have been taken out of the brain of a teenage girl.
The surgery was conducted on Apr. 3 in the Guiyang Brain Hospital, in Guiyang, capital of southwest China's Guizhou Province.
Surgeons found two cysts in the brain stem of 19-year-old Chen Li, who had been suffering from persistent headaches, poor vision and balance problems for almost a year.
The cysts are about five centimeters long, with a diameter of 0.5 centimeter, according to hospital sources.
In addition to some yellow liquid, a worm-like tissue was found in each of the cyst, which has not yet been identified as belonging to any kind of parasite as yet, hospital sources said.
More surprisingly, three pieces of hair were also found in the cysts.
Wang Guihuai, a doctor from Beijing Tiantan Hospital, also the chief surgeon of the operation, said such an illness had been rarely seen in China and it would take some time for experts to give a definite diagnosis.
The symptoms Chen Li used to suffer disappeared after the surgery, and now she can eat and dress herself.
(Xinhua News Agency April 15, 2003)
