Students at San Diego City College and MiraCosta College may have been exposed to tuberculosis earlier this year in unrelated cases, according to the San Diego Community College District and San Diego County.

A release sent out on both the SDCCD and San Diego County Twitter accounts on Monday afternoon said county health service officials are working closely with both community colleges to offer free testing this week.

The possible exposure on the City College campus occurred between Sept. 14 and Oct. 10, according to the release shared by the county and district.

Jack Beresford, director of communications and public relations for SDCCD, said approximately 50 students were identified as possibly being exposed to TB based on their shared schedule with an infected student.

The county will conduct free TB testing out of the campus Student Health Clinic, located in the B building, on Thursday, Dec. 13 from 6-8:30 p.m.

“This will be a blood test, so we’ll have immediate results for the students,” Beresford said. “With the traditional skin test you’d need a second test to verify and we didn’t want that with the holiday break fast approaching.”

TB is a potentially serious infectious disease that mainly affects the lungs. It is spread when a person with TB coughs, shouts or sneezes, according to a handout available at the Student Health Clinic.

Sherri Woody, a registered nurse at Student Health Clinic, listed the symptoms of TB as prolonged cough, coughing blood, fever, night sweats, weight loss and excessive fatigue.

“TB is very serious if not treated,” Woody said. “Anyone who is suffering from the associated symptoms should come get tested. And if they are infected, then there’s treatment.”

The TB test will be available to all students, although according to Beresford, students who did not receive the email and letter notification were not likely exposed.