CDC Warns of “Alarming” Rise of Serious Fungal Threat

Cases of the drug-resistant fungus Candida auris are climbing at an “alarming” rate – in health care facilities around the country. For several years after the first American cases were reported in 2016, only a few dozen Candida auris patients were reported to the CDC annually – but cases have begun to accelerate in recent years, according to the new CDC data published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

The annual tally of cases had increased 95%, from 756 in 2020 to 1,471 in 2021.  The preliminary figures count at least another 2,377 cases for 2022.

Candida auris is a form of yeast that will often cause no symptoms at all on the body of healthy people – however, the fungus poses a serious threat to patients already weakened by other conditions, triggering serious and invasive complications as it spreads into the body’s systems. Many cases have affected patients in hospitals and nursing homes. Monday’s report marks just the latest reminder of the growing threat posed by a range of drug-resistant pathogens.

(CBS News)