Hidden hydatid cysts expose years living with a parasite in Wales
An 86-year-old Welsh sheep farmer, Meredydd Jones, says he lived with slow-growing hydatid cysts caused by a tapeworm for years and only learned of the problem after severe pain led to surgical removal of cysts in his lungs in 2018 and 2019 (he still has a liver cyst). Hydatid disease is transmitted from dogs to humans via tapeworm eggs and can have serious health consequences. Public Health Wales notes it remains uncommon but a public health concern in mid Wales, while Aberystwyth University researchers are tracking sheepdogs with GPS to understand disease transmission across farms.