About 90 students at Spokane Community College are being tested for tuberculosis after a classmate was diagnosed with the contagious disease.

Tuberculosis can be deadly, but it’s also readily cured with proper medical treatment, said Renee Valley, tuberculosis coordinator for the Spokane Regional Health District.

The disease usually affects the lungs and can be spread through coughing, sneezing, laughing and singing.

The sick student must take three to four medicines for at least six months, Valley said.

Health district officials plan to visit three classrooms Friday to give skin tests to his classmates and teachers. They’ll return next week for re-testing, and again in three months.

“It’s a very slow disease. There’s a long, long latency period,” Valley said.

Last year in Spokane County, 16 cases of tuberculosis were diagnosed. More than 22,000 cases are reported each year nationwide.

Symptoms include weakness, weight loss, fever and night sweats. Victims can also experience chest pain, coughing and coughing up blood.

“Sometimes you might not feel very sick, but you can actively have pulmonary tuberculosis,” said Paul Stepak, epidemiologist at the health district.

, DataTimes