A 44-year-old businessman reportedly underwent surgery on his brain and was cured of his intense fear of spiders, commonly known as arachnophobia.

It was necessary for the man to undergo surgery as he was suffering from sudden seizures caused by sarcoidosis, a rare condition that can cause damage to the brain and was messing with the left portion of his amygdala, according to the media outlet NewScientist.

After the procedure of removing his amygdala, the patient's intense arachnophobia was cured, according to the Washington Post. He reportedly went from being afraid to kill spiders by hand to actually wanting to touch and observe them close up.

Although the man's other fear, such as public speaking, remained, it is possible that part of the amygdala that was removed may have been responsible for sudden, panicked fear responses, which is a common reaction when one sees a spider.

"It's like when you see a snake and you jump back in alarm, but when you look back you realize it's just a stick. That's your quick-and-dirty panic response: it isn't very accurate but it's necessary for basic survival. And then there's the more nuanced fear-appraisal which takes longer to process but is more accurate," stated Nick Medford at the Brighton and Sussex Medical School, UK.

Even though the man lost his fear of spiders, he reportedly experienced a "stomach-lurching" aversion to music. His dislike for music reportedly ultimately disappeared over time while his arachnophobia stayed away.

This recent case might be interesting when researching the cure for more severe phobias.

Researchers reportedly might be able to keep tabs on future patients undergoing the same surgery to see if the procedure will help in curing other people possibly suffering from arachnophobia.