Deadly disease outbreak kills 2,000 as experts reveal what Americans should know

As the death toll from the latest Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) surpasses 2,000 people, infectious disease experts say Americans should remain aware of the humanitarian crisis overseas while understanding the reality of domestic risk.

The virus has spread rapidly across parts of eastern and northeastern DRC, with earlier cross-border cases in Uganda. Published government data shows a total of 4,381 confirmed cases.

"There's a lot of people who live there. So this is not breaking out in a town of 50, but in rural cities of hundreds of thousands," David Wohl, MD, a professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, told Fox News Digital.

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"Compared to previous outbreaks, the pace at which this is moving is unprecedented," he went on. "The slope is just so catastrophic, with more and more people getting infected at a very significant pace without much slowing down."

Controlling transmission has proven particularly difficult in the DRC due to what Wohl calls a "perfect storm" of adverse conditions.

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Dense populations and limited access can complicate efforts to deliver medical care, track contacts and establish quarantine protocols, he noted.

"There's conflict in and around these areas, which makes getting in and out of them … really tough," Wohl said.

Despite the escalating death toll in Africa, health officials emphasize that the average American faces very little threat from Ebola.

"This is not something that I think the average person has to worry about acquiring here in the United States," Wohl said, noting that transmission requires close physical contact with bodily fluids from a severely ill or deceased individual.

"It doesn’t travel across the air and across a room," he added.

Even during the massive 2014 West Africa outbreak, which Wohl said infected more than 28,000 people, only four Ebola cases were diagnosed in the U.S. Two were imported cases, and two nurses contracted the virus while caring for an infected patient in Dallas, according to the CDC. 

Several other Ebola patients who had been infected and diagnosed overseas were medically evacuated to the U.S. for treatment.

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"We just have so much better public health, healthcare systems, hygiene, access," Wohl said. "It's a very different environment."

Viruses like measles, influenza, RSV and SARS-CoV-2 pose more immediate public health concerns for Americans, he added.

"The average person who gets a headache or a fever does not need to worry about Ebola," the doctor said.

For the U.S., potential concerns include the risk to healthcare providers traveling to Africa to assist with containment efforts and the possibility of further instability in the region.

Medical researchers are also navigating challenges with virus variants, according to Wohl.

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While treatments and vaccines were successfully deployed against the Zaire strain during the 2014 crisis, the doctor said the Bundibugyo virus circulating in parts of the DRC is genetically different. 

As a result, approved Ebola therapeutics are not approved for Bundibugyo-related disease, and their effectiveness against it has not been established.

Researchers are actively evaluating new treatments and vaccine candidates for Bundibugyo virus, Wohl said. 

Emerging technologies, including mRNA platforms, could potentially help researchers more rapidly develop vaccines against specific viral threats, according to the doctor.

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Global agencies, including the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, continue to monitor the region closely. Wohl emphasized that international support and resource deployment remain critical to stopping the surge.

"This is a fire that’s raging that continues to be out of control," Wohl said. "There’s lots of people suffering ... and I think more can be done."

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Dangerous drug-resistant fungus spreads across US, reaching 27 states

Thousands of cases of a potentially deadly, drug-resistant fungus have been reported across 27 states so far this year, according to provisional CDC data.

As of the week ending July 25, a total of 3,437 clinical cases of Candida auris (C. auris) had been documented in the U.S. so far in 2026.

California accounts for 873 cases — roughly one-quarter of the country’s total. Other states with high numbers include Texas (433), Tennessee (283), Ohio (279), Georgia (193), Louisiana (179), Illinois (171), Arizona (171), Michigan (146), Virginia (132) and Pennsylvania (121), per the CDC.

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The remaining states have fewer than 100 cases each.

Candida auris is a type of yeast that can cause serious infections, primarily in hospitals, nursing homes and other healthcare settings.

The fungus, which can survive on surfaces for prolonged periods, is "highly transmissible between patients through contact with contaminated surfaces or objects," the CDC states. It can spread through contaminated items such as bedrails, doorknobs and shared medical equipment.

C. auris can also be spread by people who carry the fungus but do not show symptoms, known as "colonization."

Clinical cases do not necessarily represent infections. The CDC defines a clinical case as detection of C. auris in a specimen collected during the normal course of medical care. 

Some clinical specimens can come from sites where the presence of C. auris may represent colonization rather than a true infection.

The health effects of the fungus can range from colonization without symptoms to potentially deadly invasive infections, including bloodstream infections.

Those most at risk of infection include patients with severe underlying medical conditions. In particular, those who use breathing tubes, feeding tubes, IVs or catheters are more vulnerable, as are those who are hospitalized frequently or for long periods of time.

People without those risk factors are unlikely to become colonized with C. auris or develop an infection.

Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst and clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone, said he considers C. auris an "emerging problem of great concern."

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"It is resistant to multiple antifungal drugs, and it tends to spread in hospital settings, including on equipment being used on immunocompromised and semi-immunocompromised patients, such as ventilators and catheters," he previously told Fox News Digital.

"Unfortunately, symptoms such as fever, chills and aches may be ubiquitous, and it can be mistaken for other infections."

Invasive C. auris infections have been associated with mortality rates of 30% to 72%, although most affected patients are already seriously ill. This can make it difficult to determine how often the fungus is a direct cause of death.

Candida auris can be difficult to treat because it is often resistant to antifungal medications, leading the CDC to classify the fungus as an "urgent antimicrobial-resistance threat."

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More than 90% of U.S. samples are resistant to fluconazole, a common antifungal treatment. Echinocandins, another family of antifungals, are currently the main treatment option for C. auris, although some strains are resistant to all three main classes of antifungals.

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"Major research" is ongoing to develop new treatments, according to Siegel.

"This is part of a much larger problem of emerging antibiotic resistance in the U.S. and around the world," the physician previously cautioned. "At the same time, sterilization and disinfection measures in hospitals can be very helpful."

Fox News Digital's Angelica Stabile contributed reporting.

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Cut off by your adult child? Psychology researcher reveals what parents should do next

Family estrangement has become increasingly common in the U.S. — but experts stress that reconciliation may still be possible after relatives have cut ties.

A 2025 YouGov poll found that 38% of U.S. adults were estranged from at least one close family member, including 16% who were estranged from a parent and 10% from a child. Among parents estranged from their children, 70% said they would consider reconciling.

Research also suggests that many parent-child estrangements eventually experience a period of renewed contact. In one nationally representative study published in the Journal of Marriage and Family, 81% of adult children who experienced estrangement from their mothers later became unestranged, as did 69% of those estranged from their fathers.

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While every relationship is different and there are no guarantees, Texas-based psychology researcher Dr. Richard Blake stated that the majority of estrangements do come to an end – but willingness to change and find common ground is key.

In many cases, parent-child estrangements are a cycle — "they'll re-engage, then they'll fall out again," Blake said. "One of the key things from the research is that adult children will reach out and if they see nothing has changed, they'll estrange again."

In an interview with Fox News Digital, the psychology researcher shared the following steps that may increase the likelihood of repairing a fractured relationship.

Estrangement from an adult child can be seen as a form of "ambiguous loss" — a situation in which someone is gone but there is still hope they could return, according to Blake.

He compared the situation to having a child missing in action: "You don't know if he's dead or alive and you kind of have to grieve, but you don't really know if you should be grieving, because there's hope."

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Research supports the significant emotional toll of estrangement. In a 2025 study of older parents, being cut off from an adult child was associated with poorer well-being and a reduced sense of purpose, as well as greater depressive symptoms.

Before attempting a reconciliation with an estranged parent or adult child, Blake said the first priority should be stabilizing oneself.

"What I tend to recommend first is to get that person stable, have healthy habits and build a community," he advised. "Good mental health practices are really important."

When communication with an estranged family member is possible, Blake recommends repeating back what the other person has said and acknowledging how they experienced the conflict before offering a different perspective.

"Listen to the other person and then actually repeat back what they said as you understood it, and validate that – like, ‘Oh, I can see why you felt like that. I see why you interpreted it in that way,’" Blake said.

It’s important to resist the impulse to immediately correct, contradict or defend, and to acknowledge the other person's experience without necessarily agreeing with every aspect of their account, according to the expert.

After listening, parents should be open-minded about making some changes as needed, Blake said.

"I really tell our parents … if you're 100% perfect, great … but most parents have done something wrong, something that they want to change. And if they want a relationship with their child, they are going to have to change some things."

Certain labels used during family disputes can make compromise more difficult, Blake noted, an issue he refers to as "moralized language."

"I talk about these therapy words that get thrown at parents … abuse, toxic boundaries, narcissists, gaslighting, all those things," he said. "In the research, when you use moralized language like that, compromise becomes far more difficult."

To parents on the receiving end of this type of terminology, Blake’s first recommendation is not to immediately react.

"I tell adult parents to pause before they really react, because it's understandably going to make them very angry."

Taking time before responding can help keep the conversation from escalating and allow both sides to focus on the underlying conflict rather than reacting in the moment.

After pausing, Blake recommends asking the other person to explain specifically what they mean, going beyond broad labels to the behaviors underlying the complaint.

"Okay, you've used the word toxic – can you describe the behavior or behaviors that you consider to be toxic?" he asked as an example.

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Blake distinguished between describing a person’s behavior and its impact on you, and assigning that person a sweeping label.

"If someone says, ‘When you criticize my weight, I left dinner feeling really, really upset,’ that's a fact. That's the person's interpretation," he said.

"But if you say, ‘You're toxic because you always criticize me,’ it’s very difficult to come back from that. So it sort of inflames the situation."

That approach shifts the conversation away from judgments about character and toward concrete actions and events that can actually be discussed.

When continued communication is appropriate, Blake suggested using language that focuses on a person’s own experience of a conflict rather than beginning with an accusation.

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"First, I would start by using ‘I’ statements, rather than ‘you,’" he advised. "It'd be like, ‘When you said this, I felt like this. When this happened, I did this.’"

This allows the person to discuss their own reaction to a specific interaction rather than beginning with an accusation.

Blake also recommends avoiding absolutes, such as "you always..." or "you never..." when trying to resolve a conflict.

In cases involving abuse, threats or other safety concerns, however, reconciliation or continued communication may not always be appropriate, he noted.

Although Blake maintains there is always hope for a reconciliation, he acknowledged that there is no single guaranteed formula for restoring a fractured relationship.

While there are many people who are "selling" reconciliation services, Blake cautioned, "I don't think anyone can promise, ‘I can get your kids back.’"

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The goal is to create better conditions for reconciliation, not to promise that specific actions can achieve it, he noted.

Ultimately, Blake’s advice is for the person to focus on things within their control, such as embracing healthy habits, aiming for stability and building a community.

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Fauci said ‘no red flags’ for pregnant women days after raising theoretical vaccine miscarriage risk: text

Former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci privately raised a theoretical risk of first-trimester miscarriage tied to reactions from COVID-19 mRNA vaccines — then publicly said thousands of vaccinated pregnant women had shown "no red flags."

Newly released text messages from Fauci’s government-issued phone, made public by Sens. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., show the contrast between his private discussion and later public reassurances.

In a Jan. 25, 2021 exchange with then-CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky and Dr. Vivek Murthy, Fauci discussed fever and other immune reactions some people had experienced after a second mRNA vaccine dose.

That reaction, Fauci wrote, "theoretically could be associated with miscarriage in the 1st trimester," according to the messages.

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Walensky responded that it was "definitely a good point, esp after dose two," while Murthy called Fauci’s observation "a really good point."

On Feb. 3, 2021, Fauci said more than 10,000 pregnant women had received COVID-19 vaccines without any concerning safety signals being detected, CNBC reported at the time.

"The FDA … have found, thus far … no red flags about that, about pregnant women," Fauci said during an interview with the Journal of the American Medical Association.

One week later, Fauci repeated the reassurance.

During a Feb. 10 White House briefing, Fauci said approximately 20,000 pregnant women had been vaccinated and that officials had seen "no red flags," Politico, The Daily Mail and The New York Post reported at the time.

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"Since the [Emergency Use Authorization] and under the [Emergency Use Authorization], approximately 20,000 pregnant women have been vaccinated with no red flags, as we say, and this is being monitored by the CDC and the FDA," Fauci said.

The public comments came shortly after Fauci had privately raised the theoretical possibility that fever and cytokine-related reactions after a second vaccine dose could be associated with first-trimester miscarriage.

The messages do not show that officials had found an increased miscarriage risk, only that they were discussing a theoretical concern while pregnancy data was still limited.

Months later, Fauci continued to emphasize the lack of adverse safety signals, saying "tens and tens and tens of thousands" of pregnant women had been followed after vaccination and there was "no indication whatsoever" of increased adverse outcomes compared with unvaccinated pregnant women, according to an article published Aug. 30, 2021 by What to Expect.

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The newly released texts show a contrast between officials’ private concerns and public reassurances.

"The text chain released today could have an immediate impact [on] public health and the principle of informed consent," Johnson's press release read.

Fauci, Walensky and Murthy could not immediately be reached by Fox News Digital for comment.

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Fauci texts suggest officials were ‘too slow to pivot' amid pandemic, says Dr Marc Siegel

Newly released text messages from Dr. Anthony Fauci have sparked fresh questions about his handling of evolving COVID-19 evidence, according to Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst. 

The texts are part of an initial batch of communications from Fauci's government-issued cellphone released Monday by Sens. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and Rand Paul, R-Ky. The messages shed light on private discussions between Fauci and other top health officials as they navigated evolving questions around the coronavirus pandemic.

In a Monday evening interview, Siegel suggested the former White House chief medical adviser was at times too "dogmatic" and slow to adapt as the science evolved.

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Siegel said Fauci was a "top immunologist" and "top vaccinologist."

"And I respect that a lot," he said, adding that he felt Fauci then ventured beyond those areas of expertise.

"The other issue is flexibility. I have a feeling about Dr. Fauci that he's too dogmatic," Siegel told Fox News Digital, adding that Fauci would "stick to some idea he has and [follow] it through regardless of contradictory or changing evidence."

Siegel said he believed Fauci veered into territory beyond his medical training and knowledge, on issues including lockdowns, school closures and masking.

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"So it's not surprising that he would, for lack of a better word, flip-flop on those areas," he said.

Regarding the newly released texts, Siegel said "it looks like he was trying to guide other public officials and leaders from the television camera, and that's not what you should be doing."

Among the issues addressed in the newly released messages is COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy.

Siegel emphasized that he remains a strong supporter of vaccines, including mRNA technology.

"I'm a big fan of the COVID vaccines and of the mRNA COVID vaccines," the doctor said. "I think they're getting a bad rap right now."

Pregnancy presented a complicated risk calculation because COVID-19 itself posed dangers to expectant mothers, Siegel noted. 

Early in the pandemic, he said, recommending vaccination during pregnancy was reasonable based on what was known at the time.

But as the virus changed and vaccines became less protective, Siegel said he believes the public discussion should have changed with it.

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"As the vaccine changed and the virus mutated, and as the vaccine became less protective, that needed to be entered into the public debate about the vaccine — and Dr. Fauci wasn't fast enough to do that," Siegel said.

Siegel also pointed to a study that raised questions at the time about a potential link between a second vaccine dose and early miscarriage.

"I don't think that Dr. Fauci and others may have been quick enough to consider that," he said.

While subsequent research has continued to support vaccination during pregnancy — Siegel said "the accumulation of data right now favors the vaccine throughout pregnancy" — he questioned whether contradictory evidence received sufficient consideration as it emerged.

"It's a little eyebrow-raising to me that it appears he was trying to dismiss a study" suggesting miscarriage could be a concern, Siegel said.

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More broadly, such decisions should rest with patients and their doctors, while emphasizing that the underlying medical data was "not suppressed," according to the doctor.

"I don't like when the government superimposes their views, especially if they're incorrect or if they are ill-informed, but I still think it should be between the patient and the doctor," said Siegel. 

Siegel argued that another problem came when policies failed to adjust quickly enough to changing evidence about the vaccines' effectiveness.

"I think the problem was that the mandates continued," he said. "We were too slow to pivot on this vaccine, and that led to a lot of public distrust."

Asked whether he saw a meaningful difference between what Fauci was discussing privately and what Americans were hearing publicly, Siegel said there was "more than I would like."

"There's a difference between public and private discourse here," he said. "There should be none."

As additional messages are released, Siegel said he will be watching how Fauci's guidance evolved alongside the evidence.

"I'm looking at one thing: Where was the evolution of guidance and thought and staying within your lane as more and more information came out?" he said. "Or did this develop more and more into dogma and megalomania? I don't know. That's what I'm disturbed about."

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At the same time, Siegel cautioned against judging pandemic-era communications without considering what scientists knew at the time.

"To be fair to Dr. Fauci, things need to remain in context," he said. "When did this happen? What was going on at the time? What did we know and what did we not know?"

Added Siegel, "We were learning on the job. We were learning as we went. We knew nothing about this thing, and it just blew over us."

That uncertainty, he said, made a willingness to change course all the more important.

"Humility is the best way to go — not dogma."

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3 things to avoid in middle age could mean 13 more years without dementia, study finds

Middle-aged adults who manage to avoid high blood pressure, diabetes and smoking can gain nearly 13 additional years of life free from dementia, according to new research led by NYU Langone Health.

The study, published in the journal Neurology Open Access, analyzed long-term health data to determine how midlife cardiovascular wellness shapes brain function decades later.

Minimizing these three common vascular threats between ages 48 and 68 dramatically postpones mental decline, according to the research.

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"Our findings argue that people need to actively avert these factors in midlife as a strategy for preserving brain health for more than a decade," said Dr. Josef Coresh, the study’s senior investigator and founding director of the Optimal Aging Institute at NYU Langone, in a press release.

Identifying actionable ways to stall memory loss is vital, he said, pointing out that roughly 42% of Americans are projected to develop dementia after turning 55.

The reviewed data came from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study, an ongoing trial that began in 1986. It included a cohort of more than 12,000 dementia-free participants whose average age was 56.

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After screening subjects for smoking habits, elevated blood pressure and diabetes, researchers tracked their health trajectories for an average of 26 years.

By the end of the observation window, 3,008 participants had developed dementia, while 5,238 died without cognitive impairment.

The study revealed a significant gap based on midlife health: Participants who avoided all three risk factors averaged 30 dementia-free years following their baseline exams. In contrast, those with all three conditions averaged just 17 years before developing dementia or dying.

Demographic trends were reported across sex and race. Female participants had longer periods of cognitive health than male participants, regardless of health risks.

Among subjects with all three risk factors, women survived an average of 18.1 years without dementia, compared to 16.6 years for men.

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White participants with all three risk factors averaged 19.6 dementia-free years, while Black participants facing the same health profile averaged 16.0 years.

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"These results suggest that vascular risk reduction may benefit all groups, but that certain populations, such as Black adults, may especially benefit from targeted prevention efforts," Coresh said, expressing hope that the data will motivate people to quit smoking and monitor cardiovascular health starting in their late 40s.

The authors noted several limitations to their findings, including that the observational design cannot prove direct cause and effect.

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Additionally, health status was recorded during a single visit, and some potential midlife lifestyle changes were unreported.

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Trouble sleeping? Your neighborhood could be partly to blame, experts say

Where you live in your neighborhood could significantly affect your sleep, according to experts and recent research on urban landscapes.

Erin Palinski-Wade, a New Jersey-based nutritionist and author of "The Sleepdemic Solution," confirmed that household surroundings and ambient neighborhood conditions can directly interfere with restfulness.

Factors such as cohabitating with family members, pets or high-noise environments frequently disrupt sleep patterns, she said.

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"If you live in noisy environments, the fact is that it is going to be noisy, and you do have to make some adjustments," Palinski-Wade told Fox News Digital.

She suggested that individuals living near busy city streets consider using a white noise machine because it "can cancel out some of that environmental noise."

Beyond the immediate bedroom environment, the visual characteristics of one’s neighborhood can subconsciously influence sleep patterns, research shows.

A study led by Professor Daisuke Matsushita of the Graduate School of Human Life and Ecology at Osaka Metropolitan University in Japan analyzed more than 200,000 Google Street View images, using artificial intelligence to assess streetscape features.

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"Based on the technique used in this study, cities could potentially measure perceived safety, beauty, liveliness and enclosure, as well as pollution and noise," Matsushita stated in a press release.

The study examined 1,089 working adults residing on lower apartment floors in Tokyo. Individuals living in neighborhoods with a stronger perceived sense of safety tended to experience longer sleep durations, the researchers found.

Visual elements like trees and other greenery, and high "enclosure" rates (tall vertical buildings with few open spaces) aligned with longer sleep and fewer insomnia symptoms.

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Alternatively, highly walkable environments with abundant sidewalks and traffic signs were linked to a lower sense of safety and shorter periods of sleep, possibly due to increased foot traffic and crowdedness, the study found.

"We hope that opening up this new perspective creates further possibilities for designing healthier neighborhoods," Matsushita said.

Palinski-Wade recommends using blackout curtains to "shut out some of that light pollution and get more restful sleep."

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Environmental factors inside the home, including room temperature and whether bedroom doors are left open or closed, can also impact how much outside noise gets into the bedroom.

The findings do not necessarily suggest that people need to relocate, the researchers noted.

The study relies on self-reported sleep data from working adults in Tokyo, which may be subject to imperfect memory, and only represents a specific group of people.

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Because the research focused strictly on residents living on the lower floors of apartment buildings in a single city, the findings may not apply to people living on higher floors or in rural and suburban settings.

"The simplest thing you really can do is try to set yourself on a schedule where you go to sleep, and you wake up at the same time each night," Palinski-Wade advised, noting that maintaining this consistency on days off or weekends has the biggest impact on sleep quality and quantity.

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