Rare human infection with pacific broad tapeworm Adenocephalus Pacificus, Australia

To the Editor: Human diphyllobothriosis associated with the Pacific broad tapeworm Adenocephalus pacificus (syn. Diphyllobothrium pacificum) is a reemerging, global parasitic disease (1). Infection with the adult tapeworm occurs widely in piscivorous mammals, including humans, with various species of marine fish acting as intermediate hosts (1,2). In the Southern Hemisphere, the organism is well described in the coastal waters of South America, southern Africa, and Oceania (2). A. pacificus tapeworms have been recorded in pinnipeds in Australian territory as far back as 1923 (3). To our knowledge, no human case has been reported from this region to date.