More<\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/figure>\nCassidy Armstrong had been living with pain on the right side of her body that would come and go for years. After undergoing a series of X-rays and blood tests that revealed nothing abnormal, Armstrong did her best to stop worrying about the pain that would randomly occur near her ribcage.<\/p>\n
In 2019, Armstrong\u2019s health began to deteriorate. The 36-year-old motorcycle mechanic lost 25 pounds, developed digestive problems and anemia and began having trouble sleeping. As the pain in her side intensified, she decided to ask her doctor for an ultrasound.<\/p>\n
ALSO SEE: <\/strong>‘We’re in shock’: Toronto woman dies after contracting dengue fever in Jamaica<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nArmstrong was initially worried that she had gallstones, but was not prepared for the diagnosis she received. Doctors discovered a grapefruit-sized mass on her liver, and diagnosed her with fibrolamellar carinoma (FLC), a rare form of liver cancer that typically affects people under 40.<\/p>\n\nCassidy Armstrong. Image via CBC. <\/p>\n<\/figcaption>More<\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/figure>\nDoctors informed Armstrong that even with treatment and surgery, it was likely she had only a few more years left to live. Approximately 44 to 68 per cent of people with FLC live as many as five years after diagnosis.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was getting ready for the worst,\u201d Armstrong said in an interview with TODAY.<\/em> \u201cI was getting ready to die.\u201d<\/p>\nThe Edmonton, Alta. resident was making peace with her fate when she underwent surgery to remove the mass. Armstrong told TODAY<\/em> that doctors removed her gallbladder, two-thirds of her liver, nodules on her lungs and scraped her diaphragm. As Armstrong recovered in her Calgary hospital room, doctors delivered more shocking news: The tumour wasn\u2019t cancer, but a rare parasite, alveolar echinococcosi (AE),<\/em> that had been growing in her body for the past decade.<\/p>\nALSO SEE: <\/strong>‘I am just breaking down’: Selma Blair reveals she feels ‘vulnerable’ in candid new Instagram post<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\u201cI wasn\u2019t sure what to think,\u201d she recalled of learning the life-altering news. \u201cI asked them, \u2018Is this good?\u2019 and they said, \u2018It\u2019s much better than what we thought you had.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\nAn MRI of Armstrong’s abdomen. Image via Sam Houston\/AHS. Courtesy of CBC. <\/p>\n<\/figcaption>More<\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/figure>\nDr. Stan Houston, a professor of medicine at the University of Alberta, said Armstrong\u2019s case is part of a growing trend in North America.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re definitely in the hot spot,\u201d Houston told CBC News<\/em>. \u201c[Before this past decade] we never had people with this disease in all of North America. In the last six years, we\u2019ve had 15 proven cases, just in Alberta.\u201d<\/p>\nAccording to Alberta Health Services, AE is caused by echinococcus multilocularis, a tapeworm often found in foxes, coyotes and domestic dogs. Humans can accidentally ingest the eggs of the tapeworm through contact with contaminated feces or by ingesting food that has come into contact with contaminated soil (i.e. grass, herbs, greens or berries).<\/p>\n
Story continues<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n\n
ALSO SEE: <\/strong>‘This is a devastating blow’: Father of three in critical condition after developing threatening strep infection<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nIn humans, AE presents as a tumour-like tapeworm larvae that grows in the body. In nearly all cases, AE targets the liver, but can spread to other organs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that because the parasite is slow-growing, it can be years before people experience symptoms or know they have been infected. However, symptoms such as abdominal pain, general weakness and weight loss occur as the larvae cyst continues to grow, mimicking the signs of liver cancer. If left untreated, the parasite can prove fatal.<\/p>\n
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