Candida auris Cases Slow but Drug Resistance Worsens, CDC Finds

The fungus spreads in healthcare settings through contact with contaminated surfaces or infected patients. It can survive on doorknobs, bedrails, and shared equipment for long periods. Healthy people face little risk, the CDC said; most infections occur in immunocompromised patients already hospitalized for other conditions.

Mortality estimates range from 30% to 60%, but the CDC cautioned that underlying illnesses make it hard to isolate the fungus's role in deaths. The WHO classifies C. auris as a critical priority fungal pathogen.

First identified in 2009 in Japan, the strain was discovered earlier in Korean samples from 1996. The slowing case growth does not mean transmission is accelerating, the CDC noted – the base is still expanding, just at a slower pace than the peak years.