Patient's guide to prescription drugs used to treat fungus and Candida yeast infectionDue to the similarity of the cell membrane of fungus (ergosterol) and animals (cholesterol), there are few antifungal drugs that are safe for humans. Unfortunately, chemicals that can poke holes in a fungus can make your cells spill their guts as well. So, whereas there are dozens of prescription antibacterial drugs, the following table lists all ten antifungal drugs available for internal use. Continuing with the theme of this web site, the fungus focus of the following material is Candida.As discussed on the Candida page, there is a distinct and important difference between a true systemic infection and an intestinal fungus overgrowth that has systemic effects. True systemic fungal infections in which a fungus is transported throughout the body by the bloodstream are extremely dangerous with a high mortality rate. Although they can occur in immune-competent people (healthy people), they most prevalently strike the immune-compromised (HIV/AIDS, cancer patients on chemotherapy, and organ transplant patients with chemically suppressed immune systems). The application of drugs for treatment of systemic fungal infections is the province of the infectious disease specialist.
