Researchers are alarmed: the number of fungal deaths is increasing worldwide. Which pathogens are considered particularly dangerous – and how you can protect yourself.
The number of deaths from fungal infections worldwide has nearly doubled in the past decade, a new study shows. Around 3.8 million people die from such a disease every year. Researchers attribute this increase in part to the corona pandemic, as Covid-19 and antiviral agents have impaired the immune system of those affected. There is also a lack of effective medications against fungal infections.
The number of fungal deaths continues to rise
The study by British researchers also shows that fungal diseases are often underestimated, although they can range from harmless skin fungi to life-threatening infections such as those caused by the pathogen Candida auris.
What is the fungus Candida auris?
Candida auris is a yeast fungus and has only been known for a few years – it was first described in Japan in 2009. Since then it has spread globally, primarily in hospitals. Candida auris is transmitted as a smear infection, meaning it is passed from person to person and via contaminated surfaces.
Even in wealthy countries, appropriate test kits for common fungal infections are often not available, are not used, or do not reliably detect all infections. Because of a missing or late diagnosis, those affected are often not treated in a timely manner – and the number of fungal infections resulting in death is increasing dramatically.
“According to the figures, fungi are now responsible for 6.8 percent of all deaths worldwide. For comparison: heart disease and strokes account for around 16 and 11 percent of all deaths, respectively,” says study author and infectious disease doctor David Denning from the University of Manchester.
Fungal infection: who is particularly at risk
Risk factors for the fatal outcome of many fungal infections are, above all, previous illnesses and a weakened immune system of those affected. In AIDS patients in particular, around half of all deaths are caused by a fungal disease.
Undetected fungal infections also play a major role in lung diseases, as Denning discovered. Around 30 percent of those who died from tuberculosis or smoking-related lung disease were also infected with a fungus. The microorganisms were not the cause of the lung disease, but contributed to the death of the patient.
The most dangerous fungi that infect the lungs include the molds Aspergillus fumigatus and Aspergillus flavus. Around 1.8 million people die from them every year. They primarily affect people with previous lung disease.
Underestimated danger: Candida auris
Other potentially fatal pathogens include fungi of the genus Candida. “About a million people worldwide die from a Candida infection every year,” says Denning. The intestinal fungus Candida auris is considered so dangerous because it can develop resistance to common anti-fungal drugs, which makes treating infected people very difficult.
Healthy people can be asymptomatically infected and are often unaware of their infection. The fungus can be dangerous for people with a weakened immune system, so it is particularly dangerous in hospitals or care facilities. Here it can be transmitted, for example, through medical instruments, catheters or breathing tubes, for example if the fungus is resistant to the disinfectants used.
The WHO explains: “Candida auris is a globally widespread pathogenic yeast that causes invasive candidiasis (fungal infection – Editor’s note) in the blood, heart, central nervous system, eyes, bones and internal organs. Among other things, infections of the urinary tract, wounds and blood poisoning occur. The mortality, i.e. the death rate, is quite high. If the fungus attacks the internal Organs, it is between 29 and 53 percent – according to the WHO.
Protection against Candida auris
As with all diseases that spread through smear infections, hygiene is the top priority in order to avoid infection. This includes, above all, regular and thorough hand washing and avoiding close contact with sick people.
Fungal diseases remain unavoidable
Since fungi occur naturally everywhere in our environment and even in our intestines and on our skin, fungal infections will continue to be unavoidable, the British researchers conclude. “In addition, there are no vaccines against fungi and in some cases no effective medications,” says Denning. Fungi have become increasingly resistant to common active ingredients. The use of fungicides in agriculture, among other things, contributes to this.