<div><p>A lethal fungus has already killed 61 people in the United States and Acting CDC chief Anne Schuchat warns that the<strong> superbug poses a "catastrophic threat" to the public. </strong></p><p><strong><em>The fungus can infect wounds, infiltrate the bloodstream and take root in the urinary tract - it's resistant to many antifungal drugs.</em></strong></p><p><!-- [invalid-shortcode] --></p><p>Public health officials are warning US doctors to watch for the Candida auris fungus in hospitals. According to STAT news, <strong>patients who have recently undergone surgery, used central venous catheters, been hospitalized for lengthy periods as well as those with diabetes are at high risk of infection. </strong></p><div><figure><amp-img src="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/35DABE0C00000578-3669791-A_new_strain_of_a_deadly_and_drug_resistant_yeast_infection_is_s-a-11_1467372502395.jpg" srcset="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/35DABE0C00000578-3669791-A_new_strain_of_a_deadly_and_drug_resistant_yeast_infection_is_s-a-11_1467372502395_GH_content_550px.jpg 550w" sizes="89vw" title="" alt="" height="9" width="16" layout="responsive"></amp-img></figure></div><p>So far, the lethal fungus was first identified eight years ago in Japan, but has now spread around the world. <strong>Sixty-one people in New York, New Jersey and Illinois have been killed by the fungus already.</strong></p><p>According to the CDC, the fatality rate of this fungus is frighteningly high:<strong> About 60 percent of people who get infected with C.auris have died.</strong></p><div><figure><amp-img src="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/Candida-auris-infection.jpg" srcset="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/Candida-auris-infection_GH_content_550px.jpg 550w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/Candida-auris-infection_GH_content_650px.jpg 650w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/Candida-auris-infection_GH_content_750px.jpg 750w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/Candida-auris-infection_GH_content_850px.jpg 850w" sizes="89vw" title="" alt="" height="9" width="16" layout="responsive"></amp-img></figure></div><p>Candida auris falls into the category of drug resistant superbugs know as CREs - bacteria known to scientists that are resistant to most antibiotics. <strong>They call them "nightmare bacteria."</strong></p><p><!-- [invalid-shortcode] --></p><p>"This is a big threat and a wake-up call," she said. "It was a problem for Ebola. It was a problem for SARS. It's a problem for drug resistance," says Schuchat.</p><div><figure><a href="http://naturalsociety.com/drug-resistant-candida-auris-hospitals-1938/" target="_blank"><amp-img src="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/bacteria-dish-petri-green-735-350.jpg" srcset="https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/bacteria-dish-petri-green-735-350_GH_content_550px.jpg 550w, https://www.shared.com/content/images/2017/04/bacteria-dish-petri-green-735-350_GH_content_650px.jpg 650w" sizes="89vw" title="" alt="" height="9" width="16" layout="responsive"></amp-img></a><figcaption class="op-vertical-center"><cite><a href="http://naturalsociety.com/drug-resistant-candida-auris-hospitals-1938/" target="_blank">Natural Society</a></cite></figcaption></figure></div><p><strong>Want to know more about superbugs, and how they start? Watch this clip below:</strong></p><div><div><div><amp-jwplayer height="9" width="16" layout="responsive" data-media-id="Ec85FQqS" data-player-id="jEuQjxp9"></amp-jwplayer></div></div></div><p></p><p>[h/t <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/diseases/candidiasis/candida-auris.html">CDC </a>/ <a href="https://www.statnews.com/2017/04/21/superbug-cdc-fungus-candida-auris/?s_campaign=fb&utm_content=bufferd4a27&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer">STAT</a> ]</p><p></p></div>