Bartonella is a bacteria, but few people know about it. New methods for diagnosing it are showing it’s more common than previously thought. Animals are the primary reservoir and the bacteria is transmitted by an animal bite or scratch, fleas, ticks, lice, mites, biting flies, and even spiders. Because it is systemic, Bartonellosis can attack a variety of organs and tissues, including the blood, heart, liver, spleen, joints, and central nervous system. It has also been linked to three different cancers. People who spend time with animals, especially pet owners, veterinarians are more susceptible to contracting Bartonella. About one-third of vets are actively infected by the bacteria, and two-thirds have antibodies to them, according to Galaxy Diagnostics. Dr. Ed Breitschwerdt, Chief Scientific Officer at Galaxy and professor of internal medicine at North Carolina State’s College of Veterinary Medicine says Bartonella infection is one of the most important untold medical stories. Breitschwerdt has worked with the One Health Initiative, a collective that looks at the links between environmental, human, and animal health. Though his professional and personal life has been guided by his care for animals, his most recent work is geared towards detecting and treating Bartonella infection in humans. Better tests are important because Bartonella infections often avoid detection or are misdiagnosed by physicians who aren’t familiar with the bacteria. Galaxy’s website contains case studies of patients who were wrongly diagnosed with lupus, multiple sclerosis, migraine headaches, fibromyalgia, asthma or other conditions before being accurately diagnosed with Bartonellosis by Galaxy’s tests. Amanda Elam, President of Galaxy says “mainstream medicine doesn’t accept that these infections could be causing chronic symptoms.” Galaxy is working to change that misperception in the medical and veterinary communities. “We’re pushing the medical education like crazy,” Elam says. “There is a whole new frontier of medicine around the role of infection in chronic disease.”