LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - With 25 active cases of New World Screwworm in the U.S., researchers with the Texas Tech School of Veterinary Medicine in Amarillo are working on new ways to fight it.

Instead of committing to retirement, Chad Cross joined the team in 2025 to take part in research projects involving the parasite that many were unaware about just a few years ago."One of the things that we learned in science long ago, and some have potentially integrated it potentially better than others, is that finding a good team allows you to do productively more than you would ever be able to accomplish by yourself," Cross said.

Some of the research projects Cross has taken part in include using cutting-edge genetic technology to trap the screwworm fly, rapid detection and identification."I think what this did was provide opportunities to think about how we can use modern techniques and technologies to address a historic problem that may become a new problem, and get ahead of it," Cross said.