Officials are monitoring what is being described as a lethal fungus that has come from Canada into Washington, Idaho and Oregon states. Officials are not unduly concerned since thus far the fungus has not taken a strong foothold and the number of cases involving human deaths have been minimal. But as the fungus spreads south, the concern is that the fungus could grow more deadly once it hits warmer weather like in California.

According to a recent article it also stated that:

“This is really big news in the world of people who study [fungi],” said mycologist Karen Bartlett of the University of British Columbia, who was not involved in the current research but who is one of the leading experts on the outbreak. “It’s of clinical health importance because of the fact that the diagnosis can potentially be missed by physicians and veterinarians” because they don’t know about this new fungus.

The fungus in question is called Cryptococcus gattii, which is found primarily in tropical and subtropical regions. It is a close relative of Cryptococcus neoformans, which kills more than 600,000 people annually in such regions. C. gattii’s primary habitat in Canada is about 10 species of trees, primarily Douglas fir and western hemlock.

The spores are inhaled and colonize the lungs, and then they spread throughout the body. The primary symptoms include prolonged coughing, night sweats, pneumonia and weight loss over a period of weeks. Meningitis can occur, which produces severe headaches. Treatment involves six to eight weeks of intravenous antifungal medications, such as amphotericin B, followed by up to six months of oral fluconazole.

“We need physicians to be aware of this and think about it when they see symptoms of infection,” said epidemiologist Julie Harris of the mycotic diseases branch of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “This is a serious infection, but so far it’s a rare infection.”

In addition the article also stated that those who spend a lot of time outdoors are going to be more suspect-able to contracting the fungus infection. Those who come in contact with infected soil also increases the risk of exposure.

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