Monkeypox won't turn into pandemic, says WHO

London: The World Health Organisation's top monkeypox expert said she doesn't expect the hundreds of cases reported to date to turn into another pandemic, but acknowledged there are still many unknowns about the disease, including how exactly it's spreading and whether the suspension of mass smallpox immunisation decades ago may somehow be speeding its transmission.

In a public session on Monday, WHO's Dr. Rosamund Lewis said it was critical to emphasise that the vast majority of cases being seen in dozens of countries globally are in gay, bisexual or men who have sex with men, so that scientists can further study the issue and for populations at risk to take precautions. It's very important to describe this because it appears to be an increase in a mode of transmission that may have been under-recognized in the past, said Lewis, WHO's technical lead on monkeypox. Still, she warned that anyone is at potential risk of the disease, regardless of their sexual orientation.