Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stated that doctors informed him a parasite consumed a portion of his brain, after encountering memory loss and brain fog in 2010.
The New York Times reviewed a deposition of Kennedy from 2012 that detailed his experience with his symptoms and the dead parasite. The Times reported that Kennedy started dealing with memory loss and mental fogginess in 2010, prompting concerns from a friend that the now-presidential candidate may have had a tumor.
Kennedy gave the 2012 deposition during divorce proceedings from his second wife, Mary Richardson Kennedy. Kennedy discussed his symptoms in the deposition because he argued his cognitive struggles in relation to the situation had diminished his earning power, according to The Times report.
Several doctors who had first concluded Kennedy had a tumor found a dark spot on his brain scans, The Times reported.
However, just as he was packing up to have surgery and remove the tumor, he said in the deposition that another doctor called him and told him he believed Kennedy instead had a dead parasite in his brain.
The doctor told him that he believed the spot on the brain scan “was caused by a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died,” Kennedy reportedly said in the deposition.
The Times also reported that around the same time as the parasite, Kennedy suffered from mercury poisoning that likely came from eating too much fish, according to the deposition. Mercury poisoning can lead to some neurological disturbance and issues with memory, among other symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“I have cognitive problems, clearly,” he said in the deposition, according to The Times. “I have short-term memory loss, and I have longer-term memory loss that affects me.”
Kennedy launched an independent bid for the White House last year after failing to gain momentum in the Democratic primary against President Biden. Age and health concerns have been listed as some of the top worries for voters headed into the election season, as Biden, 81, and former President Trump, 77, remain the two frontrunners for November.
Kennedy, 70, has also called on Biden to prove that he has the “mental acuity” to handle another term in the White House.
When reached for comment on the story, a spokesperson for Kennedy’s campaign said that the presidential candidate contracted a parasite while traveling.
“Mr. Kennedy traveled extensively in Africa, South America, and Asia in his work as an environmental advocate, and in one of those locations contracted a parasite. The issue was resolved more than 10 years ago, and he is in robust physical and mental health,” the campaign said.
“Questioning Mr. Kennedy’s health is a hilarious suggestion, given his competition.”
According to an interview with The Times this winter, Kennedy said he has recovered from the memory loss and fogginess and had no other aftereffects from the parasite. He also said that he did not require treatment for it.
Kennedy said in the interview that after receiving the 2010 call about the parasite, doctors concluded that the cyst on the brain they found had parasite remnants. He said he did not know what kind of parasite it was or where he may have contracted it.
Updated: 10:55 a.m. ET
