As cases of cyclosporiasis continue to climb across the country, with several hundred cases in Illinois alone, Kane County, too, is seeing an uptick in the number of people coming down with the gastrointestinal illness.
As of Thursday, the county had seen 34 confirmed cases so far in 2026 — around three times as many cases of the illness as they’ve typically seen annually over the past few years, according to Michael Isaacson, executive director of the Kane County Health Department.
Cyclosporiasis has sickened countless nationwide, with more than 30 states reporting cases of the illness as of mid-July, per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC recently reported there were 4,173 confirmed cases of cyclosporiasis, and said they are aware of more than 7,400 additional cases that require further investigation and analysis.
But it’s likely there have been more cases in recent weeks than what’s been reported, given that many people recover without medical care and don’t get tested for the sickness, officials said.
Cyclosporiasis is spread through human fecal matter and commonly linked to contaminated fresh produce, with past outbreaks stemming from vegetables like cabbage, snow peas and broccoli.
Though some people infected with the parasite may not experience any symptoms, others may have watery diarrhea with frequent bowel movements, according to the CDC. The illness can last days to more than a month, and it usually takes about a week to feel ill after a person has been infected with the parasite.
While cases typically rise during the summer months, experts say this year’s outbreak is unusually large.
The CDC, FDA and public health officials in several states are investigating an outbreak of infections linked to iceberg lettuce in nine states, which is believed to be connected to at least 1,947 cases. On July 17, Taylor Farms initiated a recall of all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico, per the CDC.
The CDC is also investigating other outbreaks and instances of cyclosporiasis nationally that are unrelated to that outbreak.
Illinois reported 513 confirmed and probable cases as of Thursday, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. There have been 39 hospitalizations, but no deaths reported.
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In Kane County, the 34 cases seen this year mark a considerable increase compared to previous years. In 2025, the county saw just nine cyclosporiasis cases, and in 2024 saw 13, according to Isaacson, who said cases typically occur in the area in June through August.
Whether the cases are connected to the national outbreak, however, is not necessarily clear.
“Due to the nature of this parasite, it can be tricky to track back exactly where somebody may have been exposed to it,” Isaacson told The Beacon-News on Thursday. “It makes sense that, you know, many of these cases are probably part of the larger national outbreak that we’re seeing, but … I can’t say that definitively.”
Since the county has only a small sample size and the illness may be in the food supply in different foods and different locations, finding the “epidemiological link” is more so able to be done at the federal level, where there are thousands of cases, Isaacson said. That’s why it’s important, he said, for all of the states to collaborate and to have “a strong system at the federal government.”
He said the county has been able to scale up its typical process for investigating cases of the illness.
The county health department can get reports of cases of illness like cyclosporiasis through a complaint from a resident, Isaacson explained, or it can get lab reports when a person is hospitalized or seeks medical care, which may potentially identify a reportable disease. But he noted that many cases therefore don’t get reported, since many don’t seek care or get lab work done.
But, at this point, the health department is not putting out a call to the community about the illness, he said, as it might with an outbreak from a local gathering, since there are cases of cyclosporiasis happening all across the country.
The CDC is recommending preventative steps like washing hands and any fresh produce thoroughly under running water before eating, cutting or cooking, as well as cooking produce to a temperature of at least 158 degrees and staying up to date on food safety alerts and not eating recalled food.
As for prevention, Isaacson also pointed to general practices for avoiding foodborne illnesses like washing one’s hands and produce, but he noted that those steps don’t necessarily protect an individual from a product that already has the parasite on it.
“That’s why it’s so important for us to, at the national level, to identify what the source is,” Isaacson said, “and really follow through with the recalls to make sure we can get the product … out of circulation as quickly as possible.”