Notes from the Field: Molecular Detections of Cladophialophora bantiana at a Clinical Reference Laboratory — United States, 2009–2026
Maria T. Nelson, Thao T. Truong, Lori A. Bourassa, Dallas J. Smith, Joshua A. Lieberman · 2026
Read Notes from the Field: Molecular Detections of Cladophialophora bantiana at a Clinical Reference Laboratory — United States, 2009–2026 by Maria T. Nelson, Thao T. Truong, Lori A. Bourassa, Dallas J. Smith, Joshua A. Lieberman (2026) in the Tower of Babel, a free online library of public-domain works preserved in clean, searchable text. No sign-up. The full text is served as a plain-text file at a predictable URL, where text is present: https://antarctic-labs.com/tower-of-babel/pmc-13671724.txt.
Description
A fungus that attacks the brain, Cladophialophora bantiana, kills sixty to seventy percent of the people it infects. Maria Nelson and co-authors report in 2026 on cases detected at a single United States reference laboratory. Their field notes cover January 2009 to July 2026.
The lab confirmed 48 cases and one probable case, most from brain and nervous system tissue, sent in from twenty-two jurisdictions. Detections rose roughly fourfold between 2023 and 2025. Why cases are climbing is unknown: there is no national surveillance, and even how people catch the fungus is unclear. The authors urge systematic reporting, faster antifungal treatment, and consideration of surgery, and they ask clinicians to think of this fungus when a patient has a brain abscess.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Maria T. Nelson, Thao T. Truong, Lori A. Bourassa, Dallas J. Smith, Joshua A. Lieberman |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 7 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |