Crossword Genius

Insects foremost in carrying disease (8)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

crickets

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'insects' is the definition.
(cricket is a type of insect)

'foremost in carrying disease' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'disease' could be 'rickets' (rickets is a kind of disease) and 'rickets' is located in the answer.
A single letter 'c' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for crickets that I've seen before include "Chirping insects" , "They are chirpy" , "Noisy insects" , "Insects that chirp in chimneys" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times and The Sunday Times.
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