A 14-year-old boy, Aaron Evans, in Phoenx, AZ, USA, is the latest victim of Naegleria fowleri, a brian-eating amoeba that enters the victim's nose and goes straight to the brain, killing its victim within two weeks. Evans is the sixth fatality from the amoeba this year and it has health officials worried.
Naegleria fowleri thrives in warm weather, and in "lake water, hot springs, even dirty swimming pools, grazing off algae and bacteria in the sediment†doctors say.
There have been 23 known deaths from Naegleria in the US between 1995 and 2004. Evans contracted the Naegleria amoeba after swimming in Lake Havasu, a man made body of water, located on the Colorado River between Arizona and California. Symptoms include stiff neck, headache, and fever.
Photo AP: Pallbearers carry the casket of Aaron Evans at Lake Havasu Memorial Gardens in Lake Havasu City, Ariz. on Sunday, Sept. 23, 2007.
