N. Fowleri: A Comprehensive Review of the "Brain-eating" Amoeba, Its Impact on Public Health and Perception in the Media

N. fowleri has been coined the "brain-eating" amoeba, receiving increased attention from both the media and scientific research since its discovery in 1961. While infection is extremely rare, it infects humans through the nasal passage after exposure to contaminated, warm freshwater, causing the brain destroying reaction primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM). Those infected with PAM present with symptoms such as severe headache and loss of the sense of smell and will typically die within a week thereafter. This fulminant pathogenicity has led to increased awareness of N. fowleri through the news and public health centers. This thesis aims to comprehensively review N. fowleri, the epidemiology and pathology of PAM, interventions against the disease, and how the news has portrayed N. fowleri and PAM. This thesis also strives to raise ethical and thought-provoking questions about how much media coverage and research funding N. fowleri receives given its rarity, as well as explore its value and novel contributions to understanding disease as a whole.