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More than 550 cases of cyclosporiasis have been documented in North Carolina in 2026, with 254 reported after the North Carolina Department of Public Health last updated on Tuesday, July 14.
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NCDHHS reported 561 cases on Monday, July 20. As of July 20, 295 cases of the parasite have been identified in Wake County. Not everyone who is infected will have severe enough symptoms to seek healthcare, which could make the number of cases higher than reported.
As of Monday, July 13, the CDC had evidence 81-160 of the cases in North Carolina were contracted in The United States. CDC data shows lower cases than many state and local health departments are reporting, as the CDC identifies whether the cases are acquired within the United States or not.
Cyclosporiasis, the illness caused by cyclospora, is sometimes linked to contaminated produce products. The CDC and FDA identified iceberg lettuce from the brand Taylor Farms used by Taco Bell as the likely source of infections in five states.
Taylor Farms recalled several product lots as a result of the investigation. The shredded lettuce was distributed in a variety of states, including North Carolina. On Sunday, July 19, Taylor Farms announced that the FDA had made a mistake, and a Taylor Farms sample that had tested positive for cyclospora was a “false positive.”
“Yesterday, FDA informed Taylor Fresh Foods that one of its iceberg lettuce products from central Mexico tested positive for cyclospora. Today, we were informed that FDA made a mistake, and this was a false positive,” the company wrote. “To be clear, at this moment, FDA has not identified a single positive product test result for Cyclospora.”
While the sample was a false positive, the FDA’s traceback investigation still converges on Taylor Farms lettuce as a suspect, and people should continue to obey the company’s voluntary recall, the FDA confirmed on X, formerly known as Twitter.
To clarify, this false-positive lab sample DOES NOT change the basis for FDA’s ongoing outbreak investigation or the overwhelming epidemiological data supporting the current voluntary recall by Taylor Farms.
Over the weekend, FDA alerted Taylor Farms that a new sample of… https://t.co/hedRwhPLd8
Very young, old and immunocompromised people are at higher risk of a severe infection. Cyclosporiasis may take up to two weeks to cause symptoms, and often lasts longer than food poisoning.
According to the CDC, symptoms include:
Less common symptoms may include:
State public health officials say it’s uncommon, but possible, for someone to get Cyclosporiasis more than once because infection doesn’t provide lifetime immunity. That was the case for Cary resident Matt Lietzke, who contracted the parasite in back-to-back summers.
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“I felt like I got run over by a truck,” Lietzke said.
Both times, his illness began with intense fatigue and body aches before progressing to intense diarrhea. He said the symptoms left him exhausted and dehydrated, spending much of the day on the couch.
Last June, Lietzke waited about two and a half weeks before seeking medical care. A stool sample later confirmed he had Cyclosporiasis. This June, after recognizing the symptoms from his previous infection, he sought treatment within a week.
Lietzke said he lost his appetite and forced himself to drink Gatorade to stay hydrated. At night, he was so concerned about sudden bouts of diarrhea that he slept in a recliner instead of his bed.
He was prescribed Bactrim, a sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim antibiotic commonly used to treat Cyclosporiasis, and said his symptoms improved within several hours of taking the first pill.
“It’s really remarkable how fast the turnaround is,” Lietzke said.
Patients who suspect cyclosporiasis should ask medical staff to test for it, as it is not routine. Most people recover without threatment, but the common antibiotic can help with treatment.
Cooking or cleaning produce carefully can lower the risk of infection. Clean produce with clean water and dry it.
Portions of this story were previously published in The News & Observer. This story has been updated.
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This story was originally published July 21, 2026 at 1:39 PM with the headline “North Carolina cyclosporiasis case update: 250+ new infections.”
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