<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/health" rel="" target="" title="Health"><span>Health</span></a><span> experts are alert to a highly mutated </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/covid-19" rel="" target="" title="COVID-19"><span>COVID-19</span></a><span> variant that has swept the </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/usa" rel="" target="" title="US"><span>US</span></a><span> and may become a common strain as </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national" rel="" target="" title="Australia"><span>Australia</span></a><span> moves into winter.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The BA.3.2 strain, nicknamed cicada, has spread across at least 25 states in the US during a bitterly cold winter wave and has also been detected in two dozen other countries, including Australia.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Here's everything to know about COVID BA.3.2 (cicada).</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h2><strong><span>What is the COVID Cicada variant (BA.3.2)?</span></strong></h2></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The COVID BA.3.2 variant (COVID Cicada) is a highly mutated version of the Omicron subvariant.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>BA.3.2 was first detected in South Africa in November 2024, but cases have recently surged across several continents.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Cicada was marked as a covid variant "under monitoring" by the World Health Organisation on December 5, 2025.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/new-covid-cicada-variant-symptoms-mutation-immunity-evasion-everything-to-know-explained/5ed222f5-664f-4140-974a-039d14f0baf8" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/several-countries-on-tsunamniwatch-after-78-magnitude-earthquake-hits-indonesia/a179d8be-503f-498a-af96-25b52b5e8e14" target="_blank"><strong><span>Several countries on tsunami watch after 7.8 magnitude earthquake hits Indonesia</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>According to the U.S Centre for Disease Control (CDC), detections of BA.3.2 began to increase in September last year and peaked in December across the U.S.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The strain has also filtered across other parts of the northern hemisphere, making up nearly one third of COVID cases in Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands in the last few months of 2025.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>As of February 11, 2026, BA.3.2 had been detected in at least 23 countries, including countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and Oceania.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h2><strong><span>What are the symptoms of the new Cicada variant?</span></strong></h2></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Symptoms of Cicada include most of your standard signs of COVID-19, such as:</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><span>'Razor blade' sore throat</span></li><li><span>Runny nose</span></li><li><span>Cough</span></li><li><span>Fever</span></li><li><span>Headache</span></li><li><span>Fatigue</span></li><li><span>Loss of sense of smell and/or taste</span></li><li><span>Body aches</span></li><li><span>Vomiting</span></li><li><span>Diarrhoea</span></li></ul></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h2><strong><span>Why is BA.3.2 nicknamed Cicada?</span></strong></h2></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>BA.3.2 was nicknamed 'cicada' by American evolutionary biology professor T. Ryan Gregory, according to </span><em><span>Today.com</span></em><span>.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Gregory coined the variant after its namesake insect, which is dormant underground for several years before emerging.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Similarly, BA.3.2 has been circulating since late 2024, but cases have only recently begun to soar, particularly over an icy winter period in the US.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h2><strong><span>Has the Cicada COVID-19 variant reached Australia?</span></strong></h2></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Cicada has been lurking across Australia for a while now, in fact our highest rates of the variant occurred last winter.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But Deakin University Epidemiology chair Professor Catherine Bennett said it hasn't become the dominant COVID strain in Australia.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It did take off, but it didn't take off completely," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It seems to be taking off in the northern hemisphere at the moment, so more people will bring it back home.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It may well be a feature of our winter wave in a month or two, but it's not new and we're not as immunologically naive to this variant because it's been around.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Bennett recommends high-risk groups consider a booster dose in the coming month.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We don't quite know what winter will look like, but it's a timely reminder that people who are recommended to have a booster dose should consider it as we head into April," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Being vaccinated before the wave starts gives you a couple of weeks to build your immunity."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h2><strong><span>How is it different to other COVID variants?</span></strong></h2></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Cicada is a heavily mutated variant of the Omicron strain.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It has additional spike protein mutations, which is what makes it unique from other subvariants.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>But it doesn't necessarily present differently to other COVID variants, Bennett said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It just means it looks a bit different to our immune system so we don't act as efficiently to fight it off," Bennett said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h2><strong><span>Do current COVID-19 vaccines protect against the new strain?</span></strong></h2></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The 2025-2026 COVID-19 vaccines will provide broad protection against COVID-19.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The vaccines don't specifically target all three or four dominant variants, but you do get some cross-protection," Bennett told nine.com.au.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Recent lab studies found Cicada can evade some antibodies from the vaccine, meaning the chances of infection may be a little higher, even if you are vaccinated, according to the CDC.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We've already seen it here, it does increase the chance of infection just because it's that bit different to our immune systems," Bennett said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"You still might have a different risk of coming down with COVID this coming winter, especially if you didn't come into contact with the BA.3.2 variant last year.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"If people have managed to avoid infection in the last few years, particularly if you're in that over-65 sub-group, it's worth talking to their doctors about having a booster dose now."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h2><strong><span>Is the Cicada variant more dangerous?</span></strong></h2></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>There is nothing to suggest COVID BA.3.2 is any worse than previous COVID-19 strains, Bennett said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Fortunately, while it's associated with more spread and it's now taking over, more so in the Northern Hemisphere, it's not featuring heavily in hospital cases," Bennett said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It doesn't look like it's producing more severe illness."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Bennett said that while previous COVID strains such as Omicron quickly became the dominant variant, Cicada has failed to take hold.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The other thing that's different now, which emerged through our winter is we didn't see this or any of the other new ones take over completely," she said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Usually one takes off and the other disappears, but we [now] have three or four strains that are equally dominant."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A WHO report of BA.3.2 also found the strain poses "low additional public health risk" compared with other circulating Omicron variants.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h2><strong><span>What should I do if I test positive for the Cicada variant?</span></strong></h2></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The health advice for COVID cicada remains consistent with standard COVID-19 health advice.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Department of Health advises COVID-positive individuals to stay home until symptoms have subsided.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>You can manage and treat your symptoms at home, but if they get worse you should see a doctor.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Wear a face mask in shared areas if you live with others and try to isolate yourself to a separate bedroom and bathroom if you can.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>If you have to leave the house, wear a face mask and try to socially distance as much as possible. You should also avoid higher risk settings including aged care facilities, hospitals and other healthcare settings.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>If you are in a high-risk group, your doctor can provide you with a free oral antiviral treatment that is designed to to reduce the risk of severe illness from COVID-19.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>NEVER MISS A STORY: Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.</span></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><p><strong><span>Download the 9NEWS App here via</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://apps.apple.com/au/app/9news/id1010533727"><strong><span>Apple</span></strong></a><span> </span><strong><span>and</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=nineNewsAlerts.nine.com&amp;hl=en_AU&amp;pli=1"><strong><span>Google Play</span></strong></a></p></li><li><p><strong><span>Make 9News your preferred source on Google by</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://9.nine.com.au/8x987w"><strong><span>ticking this box here</span></strong></a></p></li></ul></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><strong><span>Sign up to</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://login.nine.com.au/edm?client_id=nineatnine" rel="" target="" title=""><strong><span>our breaking newsletter here</span></strong></a></li></ul></div></div>