Bill Lankford, a 62-year-old retired scientist from Cambridge, has shared his harrowing experience after being diagnosed with tick-borne encephalitis, a rare viral infection transmitted by tick bites. The duathlete described the excruciating pain as feeling like 'an alien trying to get out' of his head.
The Onset of Symptoms
In August 2025, Lankford and his wife Christina, 60, participated in a 50km ultra-distance swim-run across Scandinavia. Shortly after completing the event, he developed cold-like symptoms including fatigue, muscle aches, and fever. After about a week, his symptoms temporarily improved, but then returned with severe headaches and flu-like symptoms.
Despite visiting his GP and testing negative for COVID-19, his condition worsened. He was initially treated for suspected Lyme disease with antibiotics, but his headaches became unbearable.
Diagnosis and Treatment
Lankford was hospitalized and underwent numerous tests, including cerebrospinal fluid sampling, which confirmed tick-borne encephalitis in September 2025. He spent a week in hospital receiving IV antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial treatments.
According to Encephalitis International, tick-borne encephalitis can cause flu-like symptoms, loss of consciousness, severe headaches, memory difficulties, and seizures. The condition is rare in the UK.
Recovery Journey
After discharge, Lankford could not walk more than 500 metres and relied on a walking stick. He experienced muscle tremors, spatial awareness issues, nightmares, chronic fatigue, and short-term memory loss. Over nine months, he gradually rebuilt his fitness through dog walks, cycling, and pilates.
He recently completed a 22km swim-run in Dorset, his first since the diagnosis. 'I would never be able to do the long distance events that we did – that's clearly off the table – but I'm able to do much shorter events,' he said.
Lankford urges anyone active in tick-prone areas to consider vaccination against tick-borne encephalitis. There is no specific treatment for the disease, but a preventative vaccine is available.
