Daily Mail A never-before-seen fungus that can infect humans has been detected in China.
Two men, in their 60s and 80s, have already died while infected with the pathogen, called R. fluvialis, though it’s unclear if the fungus contributed to their deaths.
Researchers at Nanjing Medical Center who made the discovery fear others may also have contracted the disease, which is a type of yeast.
In an experiment in mice, R. fluvialis was shown to mutate rapidly, suggesting the same could happen in humans if it becomes widespread. The fungus was discovered as part of research into samples from tens of thousands of patients who were treated in hospitals across China between 2009 and 2019.
The two men were not known to each other — they lived nearly 500 miles away. There was a three-year difference between when they were hospitalized
They also had weakened immune systems, with one man on immunosuppressant drugs while the second had diabetes.
But the cases have raised concerns, especially after lab tests showed the new fungus was resistant to three commonly used front-line anti-fungal treatments (fluconazole, caspofungin and amphotericin B).