Quebec authorities say 98 cases of monkeypox have been found, with more than 1,600 vaccinated

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MONTREAL – Quebec’s health department says the province already has a total of 98 confirmed cases of monkeypox.

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That number, reported today, has increased by eight cases since the 1990s, reported earlier this week.

Monkeypox is a rare disease that comes from the same family of viruses that cause smallpox, which the World Health Organization declared eradicated worldwide in 1980.

Monkeypox is not usually easily spread among humans and is transmitted through prolonged close contact through respiratory droplets, direct contact with skin lesions or body fluids, or through contaminated clothing or bedding.

Quebec began offering a smallpox vaccine to certain close contacts of infected people in late May, and the health ministry says it has vaccinated 1,622 people to date.

Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia have also reported cases of monkeypox, although the majority of cases in Canada are in Quebec.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on June 9, 2022.