According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), invasive mold diseases (IMDs) are rare infections caused by mold spores inhaled or entering the body through cuts or contaminated medical equipment. While harmless to most, the spores pose a risk to the elderly, cancer patients and those with weakened immune systems. Doctors are not required to report IMD cases to the government.

The CDC recently published findings from a surveillance study on IMD cases in Atlanta-area hospitals over a five-year period. Researchers identified roughly 450 cases, with a third of the patients dying in the hospital. These results are crucial for informing hospital administrators about IMD prevalence and urging doctors treating high-risk patients to pay special attention to this potentially life-threatening condition.