I've never seen anything like this in my whole life. It is not science fiction to the experts, however. They say the disease caused by the amoeba quickly ravages the brain and is invariably fatal. Aletha died April 11, a little more than three weeks after she came down with flulike symptoms. Her death left her family struggling to comprehend why something so bizarre would strike their little girl.
Scientists know very little about the mysterious organism.
They don't know where it's found, how many may be out there or exactly how it enters the body. Wiser said experts believed that the organism thrives in water and infiltrates the body through the eyes or wounds. That has Aletha's grandparents wondering whether she didn't contract the pathogen while playing at a local park or perhaps from their fish tank. Aletha was a bright, gap-toothed little girl with a radiant smile, her grandparents said. She also enjoyed playing the tambourine and singing in church, and loved being the center of attention.