The World Health Organization (WHO) has officially declared Candida auris a global public health threat after a series of cases, including a serious incident in the United Arab Emirates, highlighted the infection's high mortality rate and resistance to modern therapies.
C. auris, first identified in 2009 in the ear canal of a 70-year-old Japanese woman, is now spread to hospitals and healthcare facilities around the world. Data shows that one in three patients with confirmed infection dies, and in some severe cases the mortality rate reaches even higher levels.
Recently, a 34-year-old man in the UAE developed a C. auris infection after being rushed to hospital with severe head trauma from a road traffic accident. After a long stay in intensive care and multiple surgical procedures, doctors discovered the fungal infection during an operation to remove excess fluid from the brain.
The patient underwent intensive antifungal therapy: three weeks of injections, a combination intravenous treatment for 15 days, and an 11-day course of tablets. After nearly seven months in the hospital and blood tests clearing, he was discharged.
What makes C. auris so dangerous
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, C. auris is a microscopic yeast (2.5–5 micrometers) that is invisible to the human eye. The infection is often difficult to diagnose because the symptoms – fever, chills, severe fatigue – are nonspecific and can overlap with other illnesses.
C. auris can cause severe infections of the blood, brain, spinal cord, lungs, urinary tract, and even bones. The biggest danger is its ability to survive on hospital surfaces for weeks, resist standard disinfectants, and exhibit high levels of resistance to commonly used antifungal drugs.
Reasons for increasing resistance
Experts believe that the overuse of antifungals in both healthcare and agriculture has contributed to the development of drug resistance in C. auris. This makes treatment more difficult and requires the use of more expensive, less commonly used and sometimes toxic therapies.
Since its discovery, C. auris has been registered in over 40 countries, with a particularly rapid spread in hospital settings. The WHO has included the fungus in its “List of Priority Pathogens“ - a classification that aims to mobilize the research community and the pharmaceutical industry to develop new methods for diagnosis, prevention and treatment.
Experts emphasize that limiting the spread requires strict infection control measures, rapid isolation of infected patients and increased awareness among medical teams.