Washington, July 24 (TIWN) A drug-resistant "superbug" fungus is spreading rapidly in the US states of Texas and Washington, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said.

C auris, which preys on people with weakened immune systems, was first identified in 2009. Since 2013, it has caused at least 587 illnesses in the US.  According to evidence, the new cases involved person-to-person transmission, a first for the US, the CDC said.  While the agency found no epidemiologic links were between the Texas and DC clusters, 30-day mortality in both outbreaks combined was 30 per cent. But the relative contribution of C auris was unclear, the agency said.  Between January and April 2021, 101 cases of C auris were detected in Washingtion DC. Of these, three were isolated as being resistant to all three major classes of anti-fungal medications, at a long-term care facility.