THERE have been seven confirmed cases of monkeypox in the UK this month 

Of these, six are in London and there is one case in the North East.

A patient is being treated at the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) in Newcastle, it was confirmed last night. 

The first case was confirmed on Saturday, May 7.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said the patient had a recent travel history from Nigeria, which is where they are believed to have contracted the infection, before travelling to the UK.

Read more: Monkeypox patient being treated at Newcastle's RVI

The patient was receiving care at the expert infectious disease unit at the Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, London.

On Saturday, May 14 two further cases were confirmed.

The Northern Echo:

The individuals live together in the same household but were not linked to the previous case confirmed on May 7.

One of the cases was receiving care at the expert infectious disease unit at St Mary’s Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London.

The other case was isolating and did not require hospital treatment.

Four further cases were confirmed on Tuesday, May 16.

Three of the people affected are in London, with one ‘linked case’ in the North East.

The four new cases do not have known connections with previous cases confirmed on May 14 and May 7.

Investigations are underway to establish links between the latest four cases, who all appear to have been infected in London. All four of these cases self-identify as gay, bisexual or other men who have sex with men (MSM). 

Currently, common contacts have been identified for two of the four latest cases.  

There is no link to travel to a country where monkeypox is endemic, and exactly where and how they acquired their infections remains under urgent investigation, including whether they have further links to each other.

Those patients needing medical care are all in specialist infectious disease units at the Royal Free Hospital, London, Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle and Guys’ and St Thomas’ in London

The individuals have the West African clade of the virus, which is mild compared to the Central African clade, the UKHSA said.

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