# Why are Fungal diseases So Hard to Eradicate? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 9, 2008, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847 "2008-07-09T16:03:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/1 "2008-07-09T16:03:45Z")
My dad has been carrying around a case of Athlete’s foot since being sent to the South pacific theatre in 1943. How does this fungus hide out in the human body? Occassionally it breaks out again, and is beaten back with antiboitics-but where does it go? ---
**Author:** ![Flander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8c91f0/32.png) [@Flander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flander)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/2 "2008-07-09T16:31:52Z")
The same case?!? Get some _BOOM_ Tenactin or something to kill it off. I don’t imagine he’s wearing the same shoes and socks. Perhaps he just needs an update on foot hygiene? I’ve had athlete’s foot once and it was gone after some spray treatment and keeping my feet dry. ---
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/3 "2008-07-09T16:37:01Z")
They ordinarily aren’t, depending on the location of the infection. Chronic tinea pedis (which is what you’re describing) usually occurs in patients with Diabetes Mellitus or transplant patients taking immuno-suppresants. The best way to avoid it is to keep the skin clean, the nails trimmed and use a good absorbent moisturizer. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/4 "2008-07-09T16:41:29Z")
One word: Resistance. The common fungi are getting more and more resistant, even to the newer anti-fungals. Part of the problem is over-use. Lots of folks misdiagnose their problem as a fungus, and slather on the OTC antifungal, thus setting up a zone to breed a resistant strain. Others use the antifungal only until they feel better, then stop. This promotes resistance also. Of course, one should be sure one is dealing with a fungus, if one has a problem case, such as one that persists greater than 60 years. Microscopic examination and culture of the lesion can usually establish which fungus, if any, is present. And what might kill it best. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/5 "2008-07-09T16:44:54Z")
My husband took some very pricey oral medication to fix a foot problem. I’m pretty sure it was a fungus. You can go to a dermatologist and see if this is something that will help. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/6 "2008-07-09T16:56:23Z")
I’ve had mild (non-odorous) athlete’s foot between the same two toes for nearly ten years. I picked up in the Asian tropics. Usually it’s inert, but it gets worse during hot weather. I’ve used all sorts of antifungals, for extended periods of time, but it never goes away. I wash and dry religiously but have just conceded that I have to live with it. It could be that our western antifungals don’t touch Asian varieties. ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/7 "2008-07-09T17:29:31Z")
From my experience, the worst is if it gets into the nail itself. Short of amputation, it is a real b!tch to get rid of. There is an oral medicine that works pretty well, but you have to take it on a really specific schedule, and it has the potential to do you damage, so you need to get periodic blood tests (liver function?) to be sure it’s not killing you off as well. Another option includes a specific process of a topical application used every day and cleaned off with alcohol once a week, combined with abrading the nail of any dead and diseased tissue. Even at that the treatment is far from 100% effective. One explanation I’ve heard is that fungi are more closely related to animals than to plants, bacteria, etc. Things that kill a fungus are likely to be damaging to animals as well. If it’s a surfact thing, not too bad, but if it’s lurking in a nail bed it’s hard to destroy completely without hurting the host. ---
**Author:** ![masterofnone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@masterofnone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/masterofnone)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/8 "2008-07-09T17:43:44Z")
[QUOTE=MLS] One explanation I’ve heard is that fungi are more closely related to animals than to plants, bacteria, etc. Things that kill a fungus are likely to be damaging to animals as well. If it’s a surfact thing, not too bad, but if it’s lurking in a nail bed it’s hard to destroy completely without hurting the host. [/QUOTE] This is correct. Fungi are [eukaryotic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eukaryote), while bacteria are [prokaryotic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prokaryote). IIRC, 6000+ antibiotics have been discovered, but only a small portion don’t damage eukaryotes, so most of them are wothless, or at best dangerous, to use medically. I had a bad case of foot rot while in the Army, and for a few years after. OTC meds did nothing. I finally cured it by washing 3x/day in epsom salts and never wearing anything but open-toed sandals, which I bleached daily. It took months. ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/9 "2008-07-09T18:18:27Z")
[QUOTE=masterofnone] This is correct. Fungi are [eukaryotic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eukaryote), while bacteria are [prokaryotic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prokaryote). IIRC, 6000+ antibiotics have been discovered, but only a small portion don’t damage eukaryotes, so most of them are wothless, or at best dangerous, to use medically. [/QUOTE] This is not correct. As your own Wikipedia cite says in the very first sentence, plants are eukaryotic, as are fungi, animals, and protists. ---
**Author:** ![masterofnone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@masterofnone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/masterofnone)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/10 "2008-07-09T18:32:42Z")
[QUOTE=Terminus Est] This is not correct. As your own Wikipedia cite says in the very first sentence, plants are eukaryotic, as are fungi, animals, and protists. [/QUOTE] I don’t understand why you think this is incorrect. Perhaps I was unclear: Antibiotics that only work against prokaryotes (bacteria) are useless against fungi, as they are eukaryotes. Antibiotics that may be useful against fungi may harm us, as we are also eukaryotes. ---
**Author:** ![masterofnone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@masterofnone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/masterofnone)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/11 "2008-07-09T18:41:18Z")
Missed edit window. :smack: Oh… I see now. You are correct. I missed the word plants in **MLS** ’s post. Yes, they are eukaryotic also. However, they are irrelevent to the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/12 "2008-07-09T19:20:48Z")
Indeed. I’m having a hard time thinking of an infectious plant. And I don’t understand why an antibiotic would clear up a fungal infection. ---
**Author:** ![masterofnone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@masterofnone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/masterofnone)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/13 "2008-07-09T19:38:22Z")
[QUOTE=Sattua] And I don’t understand why an antibiotic would clear up a fungal infection. [/QUOTE] [The term originally referred to any agent with biological activity against living organisms, or more recently against micro-organisms, including bacteria, fungi, or protozoa; however modern usage of the term “antibiotic” is specific to agents with antibacterial activity.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antibiotics) The word antibiotic has taken on the meaning of antibacterial. I’m old school. I need to get with the times - please replace antibiotic with anti-microbial in the posts above. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Terminus\_Est](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terminus_est/32/3087_2.png) [@Terminus\_Est](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terminus_Est)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2008, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-fungal-diseases-so-hard-to-eradicate/455847/14 "2008-07-09T19:46:05Z")
This wouldn’t be the Dope without pedantic nitpickery. 😉 [QUOTE=Sattua] Indeed. I’m having a hard time thinking of an infectious plant. And I don’t understand why an antibiotic would clear up a fungal infection. [/QUOTE] As **masterofnone** explained, there are antibiotics that are effective against eukaryotes. Since fungi are eukaryotes, those antibiotics would be effective against them. Since _you_ are a eurkaryote, they would also be effective against you. ETA: And I see that they already explained their position. Nevermind!