develop an illness
contract an illness

He developed an illness in his eyes and soon became blind.

When young, her father developed a rare illness which could not be cured at the time.

When a college student develops a mental illness, she said, friends are often the only ones who notice.

And others who developed serious illnesses while covered by plans that collapsed can no longer get insurance.

Some close contacts, including healthcare workers, have developed similar illnesses.

Others said it had ruined their quality of life, because they worried so much about developing serious illnesses.

Survival is the term used for what happens to a person after he/she has already developed or contracted a serious illness.

"I think this young man is developing a mental illness of hypomanic nature," he wrote in his report.

By this time, however, he had apparently developed a mental illness, possibly schizophrenia.

He is more likely to develop a chronic psychiatric illness and get evacuated from the war.