<p>A major theme emerging through this issue of the journal is the impact of lymphoedema on patients, and the failure of healthcare professionals to truly acknowledge this in many aspects of everyday life. Gerusa Dreyer portrays the horrifying experience of infestation with maggots (myiasis) and the humiliation and suffering this leads to. Few healthcare professionals working in western countries will appreciate the significance of this problem, drawing from their own experience of superficial infestation with maggots that only digest dead tissue rather than live tissue.</p>