Patient Videos

Faces of Fungal Infection Interviews

In the Faces of Fungal Infections series, Mycoses Study Group Education & Research Consortium (MSGERC) members interview patients who have survived  invasive fungal infections. This series was created for to educate both patients and providers, raising awareness of these infections, promoting prompt diagnosis, illustrating the impact on patients, and encouraging strategies to support patients in their health journey during and after these devastating infections.

Experience of Coccidioidomycosis (Valley Fever) After Travel to Arizona

Larry’s Story

After returning to Colorado from a vacation in the Arizona desert, Larry became very sick with an unknown illness. Watch his story unfold as he discusses his experience—the pre-diagnostic illness, the challenging process of diagnosis, and the roller coaster ride during treatment for coccidioidomycosis. This video series features discussion from Larry’s wife, Kippi, and her perspective as a patient advocate and caregiver; Larry’s primary care provider, Ronda Orndoff, DNP, who illustrates the educational needs for PCPs caring for a patient with coccidioidomycosis, as well as members of the CDC and MSGERC discussing the diagnostic process and unmet educational needs for both patients and providers dealing with this challenging infection.

Introduction

Early Illness

Diagnosis

Visit to the Primary Care Provider

Starting Antifungal Therapy

Drilling Down on Testing

Discussing Testing and Test Results

Role of Caregiver

Turning the Corner

Resources & Support

Common Questions

Roller-Coaster Ride

Primary-Care—Directed Resources

When to Initiate Treatment

Recognizing the Need to Switch Therapy

Pearls of Wisdom

Accessing Experts

Histoplasmosis: An Unexpected Finding, A Challenging Journey

Carrea ‘s Story

Carrea was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at the age of 14 and has been on a biologic for 13 years. Recently, she struggled with an unexplained illness for over a month before things took a sudden turn for the worse:

“I woke up one Sunday morning with a fever of 104.1°F. I couldn’t really move, and I felt like it was a chore to even just lift my arm. I had a very bad migraine, and I knew something was wrong. I drove to the emergency room, and they sent me right back because my fever was so high. And they ran test after test after test. And everything came back negative. They did not know what was wrong at the time.”

Watch Carrea’s interview with Dr Pappas and learn about her experience with disseminated histoplasmosis. Witness the inspiring story of how this experience led to her commitment to advocate for other patients with compromised immune systems.

Introduction to Faces of Fungal Infections series

Carrea’s Story: Histoplasmosis Diagnosis

Diagnosis and Management of Disseminated Histoplasmosis

Key Learnings About Histoplasmosis

Blastomycoses: The Power of Multidisciplinary Care

Darrell’s Story

While working on his truck in rural Alabama, Darrell injured himself. He then noticed a small ulcer on his forearm that was very painful. He had it checked by a doctor and was put on antibiotics. The ulcer then proceeded to grow at an alarming rate over the next 6 months. Nobody could figure out what it was. Darrell shared the strange and frustrating experience with this unexplained ulcer:

“After the first biopsy, it was twice the size that is was originally. Each time a biopsy was done, it became larger. By the next biopsy, it was probably about one third of my forearm. It was starting to bleed every night in the shower, to the point where it scared me a little bit. The doctors would say they hadn’t seen anything like it and didn’t know what it was.”

Watch Dr Pappas interview Darrell about his experience with blastomycosis.

Darrell’s Story: A Case of Blastomycosis

Infectious Diseases Consult for Blastomycosis

Key Learnings About Blastomycosis

Covid-19–Associated Fungal Infections Video Series