Fungal ‘superbug’ drug-resistant Candida auris has been identified by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as a ‘serious threat to global health’ following a startling increase in the number of infection cases that do not respond to treatment over recent years.  

Candida is most notably associated with thrush, which although not life-threatening, affects at least 135 million individuals world-wide¹. The infection can however be lethal to people with immature or compromised immune systems, including new-borns and the elderly, smokers, diabetics and people with autoimmune disorders. This invasive C.auris infection can infect the bloodstream, where it manifests as sepsis, the central nervous system and internal organs.  

For decades now, public health experts have warned of the overuse of antibiotics, but lately there has been an increase in the number fungal ‘superbugs’ that are resistant to antifungal treatments. It is understood that these C.auris strains are almost universally resistant to fluconazole, with 30% resistant to two or more of the four main classes of existing antifungals.² There is concern that doctors may even be promoting development of resistance when prescribing antifungals as a preventative measure for patients who have received an organ transplant or are undergoing chemotherapy.   

The first case of C.auris infection was noted in Japan in 2009 and since this time, at least 1100 incidences have been confirmed across more than twenty countries including the […]