Newlyweds from California say their honeymoon in Maui landed them in the hospital with serious infections.
Ben Manila, 64, and Eliza Lape, 57, told HawaiiNewsNow that they were married in January and spent a two-week honeymoon in the Hana region of Maui. Lape began to experience painful symptoms before returning to California. Manila suffered serious complications and spent a month in the intensive care unit. He's gone through several operations, and has battled two rounds of pneumonia and a blood clot, along with a kidney condition that he is still working to get under control.
Tests confirmed that Manila and Lape were infected with angiostrongylus cantonensis, also known as the rat lungworm. According to the CDC, the parasite is most often contracted by consuming infected snails or slugs, which can happen accidentally by eating poorly washed lettuce. Rat lungworm cases aren't common, according to the CDC, but several cases have been documented in Maui and Hawaii over the last several years.
Manila and Lape are not sure how they contracted the parasite, but wanted to share their story to raise awareness for others traveling in the region.
