Researchers believe a deadly fungus first seen on Vancouver Island might be spreading to British Columbia's Lower Mainland, a heavily populated area that includes Vancouver and suburbs such as Surrey, Richmond, and Delta.

Between 1999 and 2007, 216 people have become sick in B.C. while eight have died after coming in contact with from Cryptococcus gattii, a microscopic fungus. The fungus lives on trees and in soil, and releases spores that can lodge in the throat, causing an infection.

Until recently, every person in B.C.'s Lower Mainland who had become infected had recently travelled to Vancouver Island.

But as the number of infections increases every year, that appears to be changing.

"What's different is that we are starting to see cases show up on the Lower Mainland that have not had contact with Vancouver Island,'' said Karen Bartlett, a University of British Columbia professor, and a leader of a scientific group that is studying the fungus.

Bartlett says researchers don't exactly know how Cryptococcus gattii arrived on the Lower Mainland.

They think it may have been transferred from Vancouver Island via an individual's boots, on a car, or on a product like wood chips.

But now that it's on the mainland, there's no reason it couldn't colonize, research suggests.

As a result, Bartlett says its especially important for Lower Mainland veterinarians to be aware of the deadly fungus because on Vancouver Island it often showed up in animals first before spreading to humans living in the same area.

But Bartlett emphasizes that infections caused by Cryptococcus gattii are still rare.

The fungus has also been detected in northwestern U.S. states such as Oregon and Washington State.