--- title: CDC Reports that "Phantom Menace" Superbug Is Spreading description: The CDC found 43 cases between 2010 and 2015. canonical: https://time.com/4136368/phantom-menace-superbug-cdc/ author: Julia Zorthian article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-12-04T16:07:00.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:56:56.128Z article:section: Health og:title: 'Phantom Menace' Superbug Is Spreading, Officials Report og:description: The CDC found 43 cases between 2010 and 2015 og:url: https://time.com/4136368/phantom-menace-superbug-cdc/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6edf7a772006b787/698873d4f887dc4fb3e93966/cre-superbug-phantom-menace.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: CRE superbug phantom menace og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 'Phantom Menace' Superbug Is Spreading, Officials Report twitter:description: The CDC found 43 cases between 2010 and 2015 twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6edf7a772006b787/698873d4f887dc4fb3e93966/cre-superbug-phantom-menace.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'Phantom Menace' Superbug Is Spreading, Officials Report ## Video: Why Do I Need a Flu Shot? TIME Explains [Watch (HLS stream): Why Do I Need a Flu Shot? TIME Explains](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/jxdi6F8H.m3u8) (2:20)  _Published 2013-11-04. If you think it's one and done like a measles vaccine, think again. The flu virus is ever-changing and mutating. So this year health experts created new vaccines that can protect you from upto 4 of the latest strains._  by [Julia Zorthian](https://time.com/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Dec 4, 2015 4:07 PM UTC  This illustration from the Centers for Disease Control shows a group of CRE bacteria. This illustration from the Centers for Disease Control shows a group of CRE bacteria.Melissa Brower—AP  by [Julia Zorthian](https://time.com/author/julia-zorthian/)  ## Julia Zorthian Dec 4, 2015 4:07 PM UTC Instances of a threatening superbug that scientists are calling the “phantom menace” are rising in the U.S., officials[ reported Thursday](http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6447a3.htm?s%5Fcid=mm6447a3%5Fe). This particular strain of bacteria is a type of Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), which are dangerous because they typically are highly antibiotic-resistant and have steep mortality rates, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said. According to the CDC, this CRE carries a plasmid with an enzyme that can break down certain antibiotics, which it can transfer to other bacteria in the body, the [Washington _Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/12/03/superbug-known-as-phantom-menace-on-the-rise-in-u-s/) explains. But the “phantom menace” earned its name because it has gotten less attention than other CREs, since its antibiotic resistance is relatively lower than other strains, and because it can escape detection from scientists. While there was only one case of the superbug in 2010, there have been 11 per year in 2013, 2014 and 2015\. [The CDC reported](http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6447a3.htm?s%5Fcid=mm6447a3%5Fe) a total number of at least 43 patients in 19 states between June 2010 and August 2015. “This is a tricky drug-resistant bacteria, and it isn’t easily found,” CDC Director Thomas Frieden told the _Post_. “What we’re seeing is an assault by the microbes on the last bastion of antibiotics.” \[[_The Washington Post_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2015/12/03/superbug-known-as-phantom-menace-on-the-rise-in-u-s/)\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4136368/phantom-menace-superbug-cdc/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4136368/phantom-menace-superbug-cdc/"},"headline":"'Phantom Menace' Superbug Is Spreading, Officials Report","datePublished":"2015-12-04T16:07:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:56:56.128Z","description":"The CDC found 43 cases between 2010 and 2015","url":"https://time.com/4136368/phantom-menace-superbug-cdc/","keywords":["Public Health","CDC"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6edf7a772006b787/698873d4f887dc4fb3e93966/cre-superbug-phantom-menace.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Julia Zorthian","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/julia-zorthian/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6edf7a772006b787/698873d4f887dc4fb3e93966/cre-superbug-phantom-menace.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"CRE superbug phantom menace","caption":"CRE superbug phantom menace","creditText":"Melissa Brower—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/public-health/","name":"Public Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4136368/phantom-menace-superbug-cdc/","name":"'Phantom Menace' Superbug Is Spreading, Officials Report"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Why Do I Need a Flu Shot? 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