For almost a year, a 44-year-old man in Türkiye lived with a draining sore on the back of his left leg. By the time dermatologists examined it, it had become a crusted, foul-smelling, wart-like lump about 3 centimeters across, the kind of lesion that can raise concern for cancer.
A biopsy ruled out malignancy. A wound culture pointed elsewhere: Pasteurella stomatis, a bacterium that lives in the mouths and upper airways of cats and dogs. The man said his household dog intermittently licked the spot.
