A Phoenix woman, who survived cancer twice as a child, was left partially paralyzed by a rare, life-threatening disease after eating a home-cooked fish meal prepared by her friend.
Trinity Peterson-Mayes, 24, fell ill after having dinner with her friends last month, where she tried a dish of fermented swordfish.
“It tasted horrible, I’m going to be so honest,” she told 12News. “It's supposed to be healthy and I figured I might as well try, if it's bad and I'll just get a bad stomach ache.”
Just days later, Peterson-Mayes began having trouble swallowing and speaking, which developed to the point where she could barely take a sip of water or swallow her own saliva.
She was rushed to the hospital and placed on a ventilator, though doctors initially did not know what was wrong with her.
After consulting with neurologists and specialists, Peterson-Mayes was diagnosed with botulism, an extremely rare and life-threatening neurological illness caused by a toxin that blocks communication between nerves and muscles.
Her mother, Loren Amatruda, said that none of the neurologists at the hospital had ever seen a real-life case of botulism before and had only read about it.
On average, only two dozen adults in the U.S. are diagnosed with botulism per year.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are five main types of botulism and all are medical emergencies.
Foodborne botulism can happen by eating homemade foods that have been improperly canned, preserved, or fermented. Peterson-Mayes said that two of the other five people who ate the fermented swordfish also developed botulism.
Following her diagnosis, a life-saving antitoxin had to be rushed in from another state to stop the toxin from spreading through Peterson-Mayes’ body and paralyzing her further. She is now on the “long road to recovery,” her mother has said, with her body having to rebuild nerve connections before she can regain strength.
Recovery from botulism can take weeks or months and sometimes even longer, and often requires extensive rehabilitation and therapy. She also says she will be considering changes to her diet.
“I am scared of sushi now too. Canned food, sushi, I don't know about that anymore,” she told 12News.
In addition, Peterson-Mayes is a two-time cancer survivor, having been diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare childhood cancer. She fought through treatment and survived but at the age of 11 was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, an aggressive bone cancer. Once again, she beat cancer for a second time.
“Trinity is only 24 years old, but she has already overcome more than most people face in a lifetime,” her mother said.
“After everything she had been through as a child, we believed the hardest battles were behind her.”
The GoFundMe page to support Peterson-Mayes has raised around $8,500 so far.
High winds cause power outages and property destruction as wild March weather blows in
Ex-senator Sinema admits to romantic relationship with her security guard
People ‘high up’ in the White House are against Trump’s war with Iran, ex-ally claims
Cuba’s electric grid collapses plunging millions into island-wide power blackout
Fox News uses a headline that Hegseth ranted about, demanding more ‘patriotic press’
Storms cancel more US flights as TSA remains under pressure from partial government shutdown
