Monkeypox cases in UK surge by 38% as hundreds of new infections detected

99 per cent of all infections are among men, says UK Health Security Agency

Monkeypox cases are continuing to spread in the UK (Alamy/PA)

A further 219 cases of monkeypox have been detected in the UK, bringing the nationwide total to 793.

In new data released on Tuesday, the UK Health Security (UKHSA) said 99 per cent of infections were among men; just five women have so far been infected with the viral disease.

The majority of UK cases are also among London residents (498 of 624 with reported home address), UKHSA added. The median age of confirmed infections is 37.

Of the UK’s 793 cases, 766 are in England, 18 are in Scotland, six in Wales and three in Northern Ireland.

It comes as scientists warned that the spread of monkeypox in Britain has yet to be halted.

“At the moment there is no clear evidence that the current epidemic is coming under control,” Paul Hunter, a professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia, told The Guardian.

UKHSA said the outbreak has mainly been in gay, bisexual, and men who have sex with men without documented history of travel to endemic countries.

Previous infections in the UK had been either imported from countries where monkeypox is endemic or contacts with documented epidemiological links to imported cases.

Between 2018 and 2021, there were 7 cases of monkeypox detected in the UK.

UKHSA will now release the latest monkeypox case updates twice a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays.