‘It doesn’t feel real’: Sault woman, 18, dies of rare fungal infection

Family members and friends are mourning the death of Miah Joy of Sault Ste. Marie, an 18-year-old woman who died of blastomycosis at Sudbury’s Health Sciences North ICU on Aug. 1.

Blastomycosis is a rare fungal infection usually acquired by breathing in the spores of fungi that can be found in moist soil and rotting wood.

“It’s not confirmed where she got it from but she did shore fishing which means she was around wet wood and soil,” said Miah’s sister Sierra Joy, speaking to SooToday.

“It was in June when she started [to feel ill] and we just thought it was a typical chest cold and then July 5th she was diagnosed with pneumonia,” Sierra said.

Sierra said Miah was later diagnosed with blastomycosis.

Fully intubated, suffering from collapsed lungs and in a medically induced coma, Miah, a Type 1 diabetic, was transported from the Sault to Sudbury’s Health Sciences North July 16.

She needed extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, also known as ECMO, which involves blood being pumped outside the body to a heart-lung machine that removes carbon dioxide and sends oxygen-filled blood back to tissues in the body.

In Sudbury, Miah appeared to be improving and her breathing tube was removed. However, her condition worsened and she passed away Tuesday. 

“It’s surreal,” her sister said. “It doesn’t feel real. It just feels like everybody’s telling a lie and that she’ll be coming home, but she’s not coming home.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S., there are only one or two cases per 100,000 people each year in states where blastomycosis is reported. One report found 1,216 deaths related to the illness from 1990 to 2010.

The disease can also strike pets, but it is not transmissible between humans or from animals to humans.

Apart from grief, Sierra and husband David Coghill are feeling frustration with the healthcare system.

They believe Miah Joy was misdiagnosed with pneumonia locally.

“Don’t be afraid to go to the hospital and seek help and push (for a second opinion),” Sierra said.

“Fight for your health,” Coghill said.

“If you don’t think that doctor is correct, ask for another opinion. People need to start standing up for themselves and fighting and getting second opinions. I have very little faith in Sault Area Hospital. Had Miah been treated for blastomycosis three weeks sooner she might still be here today.”

Coghill said Algoma Public Health should be doing more soil testing at frequently visited Sault and Algoma wooded areas such as Pointe Des Chenes.

“I think they should have a better understanding of how to deal with this. They should be out there trying to find areas where this is common. They test the water at Pointe Des Chenes, they test the water all over the place for things like swimmer’s itch but why aren’t they testing the soil at these places for things like blastomycosis?”

Algoma Public Health did not comment on Miah Joy’s death.

“On average we have one to three cases per year in Algoma and some years we may see more, some years we may see less, but we are well within what we would statistically expect for the current blastomycosis season,” said Dr. John Tuinema, APH associate medical officer of health, speaking to SooToday Thursday.

A blastomycosis season in northern Ontario, Tuinema said, typically runs from early spring to late fall.

Tuinema said APH has no specific plans to ramp up testing of soil at Pointe Des Chenes or other popular outdoor destinations in the region. 

“The testing [of soil] isn’t very reliable and even if we were to do the testing and find it, it doesn’t mean that there’s a particularly higher risk for that area than elsewhere. Public health or any health organization wouldn’t do that type of testing. It’s almost exclusively done for research purposes only.”

“It’s incredibly rare that blastomycosis happens and because of how rare it is we certainly wouldn’t advise that you avoid doing those things that you love, like going camping or going along the riverside. Your risk is so low. For some people who have a weakened immune system there aren’t specific recommendations for blastomycosis itself but I would say if you have been given advice on how to avoid infections in general from your health care practitioner you should continue to do that.”

Symptoms of blastomycosis may include:

• Cough, or cough with blood
• Fever
• Shortness of breath
• Chills and/or night sweats
• Fatigue
• Weight loss and poor appetite
• Joint or bone pain
• Back or chest pain

Tuinema said that anyone experiencing such symptoms should seek medical help.

“It’s important to be seen and get treated because it can vastly improve the course of the disease for you. You would be given anti-fungal medications that are almost always given orally and often they can be done as an outpatient. You don’t need to stay at the hospital and because it doesn’t transmit from person to person somebody with blastomycosis isn’t required to isolate at home either.”

Blastomycosis struck Constance Lake First Nation, 40 kilometres west of Hearst, Ontario in 2021. Forty-five cases and five deaths were reported. 

“Constance Lake was a very tragic outbreak and one that they spent a significant amount of time investigating. Many people were sick and currently in Algoma, and in the past, we’ve not had cases rise to that level of concern. But if that were to happen we would be the first ones to be letting the public know,” Tuinema said. 

“We’ll continue to monitor cases as they come in. We’ll continue to investigate every single one and it’s very unlikely but if something were to be more serious in the community we’ll be right there to provide messaging and advice as needed.”

Meanwhile, a GoFundMe page has been set up by a family friend to help pay for Miah Joy’s funeral costs.