She said countries with vaccine supplies could consider them for those at high risk of the disease, like close contacts of patients or health workers, but that monkeypox could mostly be controlled by isolating contacts and continued epidemiological investigations. Researchers share draft genome sequences of monkeypox virus The disease is no more likely to affect people because of their sexual orientation and scientists warn the virus could infect others if transmission isn't curbed. and elsewhere have noted that the majority of infections to date have been in gay and bisexual men, or men who have sex with men. On Friday, Spanish authorities said the number of cases there had risen to 98, including one woman, whose infection is “directly related” to a chain of transmission that had been previously limited to men, according to officials in the region of Madrid.ĭoctors in Britain, Spain, Portugal, Canada, the U.S. That marks a significant departure from the disease's typical pattern of spread in central and western Africa, where people are mainly infected by animals like wild rodents and primates, and outbreaks haven't spilled across borders. Earlier this week, a top adviser to WHO said the outbreak in Europe, U.S., Israel, Australia and beyond was likely linked to sex at two recent raves in Spain and Belgium.