ST. LOUIS — A Missouri man suffered giant boils on his neck after contracting a rare, infectious disease from his feline friend.
The 68-year-old had gone to the doctor after a weeklong fever followed by two months of painful swelling on his right of neck and face, according to The New England Journal of Medicine.
The man's cat died two days before his symptoms began, supposedly from feline leukemia, though no laboratory testing confirmed this.
Doctors now suspect a misdiagnosis, saying it may have instead been infected with toxic Francisella tularensis bacteria, which was likely transmitted to the man via bites or scratches while he was administering medication.
The man later tested positive for tularensis and was diagnosed with glandular tularemia, for which he was put on antibiotics for four weeks.
The painful swelling improved in just five days, and was completely gone in three weeks.
Tularemia is more commonly known as "rabbit fever," since rabbits, hares, and rodents are especially susceptible. Pets typically contract the disease when they consume infected prey.
