A rarely discussed fungal infection found primarily in soil in the Southwest and endemic to Arizona had a significant impact on people’s respiratory health in 2024. Living in Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, puts residents at high risk of contracting Valley fever.

While anyone living in or traveling to a valley fever (coccidioidomycosis) endemic area is at risk, about 5% of seniors are most at risk.

According to data from the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) as of January 3, 2025, there have been approximately 100% more Vallery fever cases per year over the past decade.

At the end of 2024, ADHS reported that Maricopa County had approximately 9,744 of Arizona’s 14,680 Valley Fever cases. In 2023, all of Arizona reported 9,148 cases.

Across the United States, 22,939 cases were reported in 2024. On average, there were about 200 deaths related to coccidioidomycosis in the United States each year

Without an approved antifungal vaccine for humans in 2025, valley fever infections require immediate treatment and can become very serious. Symptoms can last for years and may require lifelong treatment with antifungal medications.

Infections can cause chronic pneumonia, similar to tuberculosis, and disseminated disease.

Disseminated disease occurs when the fungal infection spreads from the lungs to other parts of the body. The most common areas of spread are skin, bones, joints and brain. A brain infection can be fatal.

While the CDC has not issued a travel health alert about Valley fever outbreaks in Arizona and California, countries such as Canada list the disease as a health risk when visiting the United States

From a disease prevention perspective, Anivive Lifesciences Inc. recently announced that the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has awarded a new contract worth up to $33 million to support the development of a vaccine against Coccidioides.

Dr. Edward Robb, Chief Strategy Officer and Principal Investigator of Anivive Lifesciences, commented in a press release dated August 2, 2024: “This joint effort has brought a significant step forward in the field of vaccinology and has the potential to be the first vaccine, which prevents a serious systemic fungal infection that is common in humans and animals.”

This contract funding aims to leverage the underlying science of Anivive’s Valley Fever vaccine for dogs, which is currently under review by the USDA Center for Veterinary Biologics.