CLEVELAND (WJW) - On Thursday, pop icon Justin Timberlake announced on Instagram that he’s been battling Lyme disease.

The chart-topping star described how the tickborne sickness is taking a toll on his health and his ability to perform, calling it, “relentlessly debilitating both mentally and physically.”

The CDC estimates that 476,000 people are diagnosed with Lyme disease each year, but doctors said if caught early, it’s easily treatable with antibiotics.

However, Cleveland Clinic infectious diseases specialist Dr. Donald Dumford explained how advanced cases like Timberlake's can happen.

“The bacteria is caused by borrelia burgdorferi and the way you get this is via tick bite. The tick typically has to be attached for about two to three days to transmit Lyme disease,” he said.

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