Letter Re: A New Fungus Among Us

James,

I saw this on the net and thought that your readers may not have heard of this yet: Deadly Airborne Fungus Spreading in Northwest.

Heads up folks:

“A potentially deadly strain of fungus is spreading among animals and people in the northwestern United States and the Canadian province of British Columbia.”

“The spore-forming fungus can cause symptoms in people and animals two weeks or more after exposure. They include a cough that lasts for weeks, sharp chest pain, and shortness of breath, headache, fever, nighttime sweats and weight loss.”

“The new strain appears to be unusually deadly, with a mortality rate of about 25 percent among the 21 U.S. cases analyzed.”

According to the CDC, C. gattii has become endemic to the Pacific Northwest.

Regards, – Edward K.