The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that hundreds of monkeypox cases have surfaced beyond the African countries where the disease is typically found, warning that the virus has likely been spreading under the radar.
“Investigations are ongoing, but the sudden appearance of monkeypox in many countries at the same time suggests there may have been undetected transmission for some time,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters on Wednesday.
Since the United Kingdom first reported a confirmed monkeypox case on May 7, more than 550 confirmed cases of the disease have been verified in 30 countries outside of the west and central African nations where it is endemic, the WHO said.
