Influencer Contracts Liver Fluke After Eating Sashimi 14 Times a Year; Doctors Warn Can Trigger Bile Duct Cancer
SingTao · 1 SOURCESabout 1 hour ago5 MIN
Summary
A Chinese food influencer known as Zhu Linxi (朱林夕) has been diagnosed with liver fluke infection after consuming freshwater fish sashimi approximately 13 to 14 times over the past year. Despite experiencing only mild symptoms including low-grade fever and slight abdominal discomfort, medical examination revealed the parasite through an enhanced MRI scan. Health experts warn that prolonged infection can lead to cholangitis, liver cirrhosis, and potentially bile duct cancer .
Key Points
- Zhu Linxi, a popular food blogger on the platform Xiaohongshu, revealed she consumed fish sashimi around 13 to 14 times in the past year, with her most recent consumption in late June and early July .
- Initial symptoms were subtle—she experienced brief low-grade fever and mild upper abdominal discomfort about two weeks after infection, which she initially dismissed .
- Standard parasite testing proved inconclusive: she visited three hospitals where both stool and blood tests returned negative results, highlighting the diagnostic difficulty of liver fluke infections .
- The infection was ultimately detected through an enhanced upper abdominal MRI scan, which revealed liver flukes in her bile ducts .
- Experts emphasize that common food preparation methods do not kill parasites: Man Jessica (文嘉敏), manager at the Hong Kong Food Innovation and Safety Centre, noted that onion, garlic, wasabi, and baijiu (white liquor) cannot eliminate parasites or their eggs .
Why It Matters
Hong Kong consumers frequently enjoy sashimi and other raw fish dishes at Japanese restaurants and local eateries. Dr. Ng Ho (吳昊), a specialist in gastroenterology and hepatology, warns that while early-stage liver fluke infection often shows no symptoms, chronic severe infection can cause bile stasis, cholangitis, gallstones, and may progress to liver cirrhosis or bile duct cancer . This case underscores the importance of source transparency regarding fish provenance and cooking methods, particularly for freshwater species that inhabit more stagnant and pollution-prone waters where parasite risk is significantly elevated .
Hong Kong consumers frequently enjoy sashimi and other raw fish dishes at Japanese restaurants and local eateries. Dr. Ng Ho (吳昊), a specialist in gastroenterology and hepatology, warns that while early-stage liver fluke infection often shows no symptoms, chronic severe infection can cause bile stasis, cholangitis, gallstones, and may progress to liver cirrhosis or bile duct cancer . This case underscores the importance of source transparency regarding fish provenance and cooking methods, particularly for freshwater species that inhabit more stagnant and pollution-prone waters where parasite risk is significantly elevated .