Woman Felled by Tiny Bite of Fermented Swordfish

It was "supposed to be good for your gut," says Trinity Peterson-Mayes of the fermented swordfish, made by a friend, that she tried a quarter-size bite of in February. Instead, the 24-year-old Arizona woman ended up with a case of foodborne botulism so severe she was temporarily paralyzed and on a ventilator. The Phoenix wedding planner, who twice survived childhood cancer, tells 12News she initially had trouble swallowing water and nearly choked on coffee before heading to an ER, where doctors struggled to pinpoint the problem. She was later transferred to St. Joseph's Medical Center and Barrow Neurological Institute, where botulism was diagnosed and antitoxin administered.

Botulism from food is rare—there are about two dozen US cases a year, per emergency physician Dr. Frank LoVecchio—but it can shut down the muscles needed to breathe. Peterson-Mayes says she blacked out and woke up unable to move, speak, or breathe on her own. Two of the five friends who sampled the same fermented swordfish were also hospitalized with botulism but are recovering, she says. She's currently in a rehab facility, and a GoFundMe campaign to help defray her costs has raised nearly $9,000. As for how the fish tasted, "It was horrible," Peterson-Mayes says. "It was so bad I figured it might give me a stomachache. But I did not expect this."