A deadly fungal disease is spreading through the U.S. at an alarming rate, a new study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found.

Candida auris, a drug-resistant fungus, has been found in 29 states with at least 2,377 confirmed cases in 2022. That’s a sharp increase from 1,474 cases in 2021 and just 757 in 2020, the CDC said. The greatest number of cases have been reported in California, Nevada, Texas, Florida, Illinois and New York. Alabama has reported 6 cases in the last 12 months after reporting no cases from 2012 to 2021.

“The rapid rise and geographic spread of cases is concerning and emphasizes the need for continued surveillance, expanded lab capacity, quicker diagnostic tests, and adherence to proven infection prevention and control,” CDC epidemiologist Dr. Meghan Lyman said.

C. auris can case severe illness in older people and those with weakened immune systems. About one-third of people who become sick with the fungus die, though many had other serious illnesses, such as blood cancers or diabetes or who had devices like tubes going into their bodies, such as feeding tubes or catheters.

READ MORE: Baby formula recall: 145,000 cans possibly contaminated, FDA says

The spread is especially concerning, the CDC noted, because C. auris is resistant to multiple traditional antifungal medications, is difficult to identity with standard lab methods and has caused outbreaks in healthcare settings.

It is believed to spread through contact with contaminated environmental surfaces or equipment or by person-to-person transmission To prevent spread, people should regularly wash hands with soap and water or use an alcohol-based sanitizer.