So I saw that the default setting is that you get slower as you get more infected...

But with the addition of mods like "We Have Runners", it's possible for there to be mutant strains...

Wait if, as you became more infected, you began to get traits that indicated what you'll turn into when you die...

Why? Because it might JUST be useful to keep that infection through a horde night, if you can plan it right. I'd definitely take a strain that consumed hunger faster but gave you advanced running speed because you're going to be a sprinter, for instance.