Drug-Resistant Fungus Is Spreading in the US

A drug-resistant fungus called Candida auris has been on the loose since at least 2016 when it was first discovered. Now, nearly 10 years later, it’s popping its head up again as cases are being reported across several states, particularly in Georgia and Florida.   

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has labeled it an “urgent antimicrobial resistance threat” due to its resistance to treatments, meaning if you get it your options of getting rid of it are slim to none.

In 2023, KTLA spoke to Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of South Carolina, Melissa Nolan, who said, “If you get infected with this pathogen that’s resistant to any treatment, there’s no treatment we can give you to help combat it. You’re all on your own.”

The US Has a Drug-Resistant Fungus Problem

The good news is that if you avoid healthcare settings, then you will likely avoid the fungus, since the fungus likes to spread from one immunocompromised person to another, often through medical devices like catheters and feeding tubes. Symptoms include fever and chills, which is why many patients mistake it for other illnesses or infections.

While the symptoms sound mild, the CDC has estimated that “based on information from a limited number of patients, 30 to 60 percent of people with C. aruis infections have died.” The CDC does go on to note that many of these patients also have other, more serious illnesses that could have increased the risk of death.

The fungus thrives in healthcare environments. It can live on a patient bed rail that did not have every centimeter rigorously disinfected before a new patient was brought in. It can live on the countertops at a nurse’s station.

It can live on and be transferred between doorknobs. It’s a resilient little past that can spread even when cleaning procedures are strictly adhered to. The fungus only needs a small amount of itself to survive so it can replicate.

Its adaptability also makes it challenging to control in hospitals since the pathogen is able to propagate and infect new patients rather easily, mutating and changing along the way.