The Arc de Triomphe is lit up in blue to celebrate the start of the French presidency of the European Union in Paris, France, Jan. 1, 2022. The most emblematic landmarks in France turned blue Saturday night to mark French presidency of the EU. (Xinhua/Gao Jing)

Health authorities in North America and Europe have detected dozens of suspected or confirmed cases of monkeypox since early May, sparking concern the disease endemic in parts of Africa is spreading.

Canada was the latest country to report it was investigating more than a dozen suspected cases of monkeypox, after Spain and Portugal detected more than 40 possible and verified cases of the virus. 

Britain has confirmed nine cases since May 6, and the US verified its first on Wednesday, saying a man in the eastern state of Massachusetts had tested positive for the virus after visiting Canada.

The illness, from which most people recover within several weeks and has only been fatal in rare cases, has infected thousands of people in parts of Central and Western Africa in recent years but is rare in Europe and North Africa.

The WHO said on Tuesday it was coordinating with UK and European health officials over the new outbreaks.

"We really need to better understand the extent of monkeypox in endemic countries... to really understand how much is circulating and the risk that it poses for people who are living there, as well as the risk of exportation," infectious disease epidemiologist Dr Maria van Kerkhove said at a WHO press conference on Tuesday on global health issues.

The first case in Britain was someone who had traveled from Nigeria, though later cases were possibly through community transmission, the UK Health Security Agency said in a
statement.

The WHO said it was also investigating that many cases reported were people identifying as gay, bisexual or men who have sex with men. 

AFP