Just when we thought the COVID-19 pandemic chaos was finally behind us, surprise—another potentially fatal disease emerges. I’m not trying to make light of the situation, just pointing out the reality of our less-than-ideal circumstances. On 14 August 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared the recent mpox outbreak an international public health emergency. While the risk of infection in the UK remains low, a smart girlie is a safe girlie, so let’s dive into everything an informed queen should know.

Welcome back to Explained By a Blonde. This week, we’re channelling our inner Meredith Grey to discuss the ongoing mpox outbreak that’s spreading across Africa and small corners of Europe. Up until recently, this disease was primarily confined to Africa, but with the UK outbreak in 2022 and a recent case in Sweden, medical officers are increasingly concerned that the infection could spread quickly throughout Europe, affecting multiple communities.

According to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the outbreak “can be controlled and can be stopped,” but doing so will require “approximately $135 million over the next six months for the acute phase of the outbreak.”

From symptoms to look out for to insight into why the mpox spread initially happened, let’s break it all down.

Mpox, formerly known as monkeypox, is an infectious disease that originated in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1970. According to the Associated Press, mpox hadn’t caused significant outbreaks beyond Africa until May 2022, when authorities detected dozens of epidemics in Europe, North America and other regions. A more dangerous and fatal strain of the disease has been spreading particularly in Nigeria and Congo.

As many scientists and journalists have pointed out, the mpox epidemic is directly linked to a longstanding neglect of diseases originating in Africa. Rather than addressing the issue with a stable and efficient vaccination programme, public health communities have repeatedly failed developing countries, leaving thousands to suffer.

It’s also important to recognise that when the media has properly addressed the seriousness of mpox, coverage has often been laced with homophobia and racism. Mpox is not a ‘gay disease’, and labelling it as such only fuels harmful stigma against the LGBTQIA+ community. 

When mpox began affecting people in mid-2022, comparisons to the HIV/AIDS crisis quickly emerged, especially since, at the time, most cases were spread among men having sex with men. Queer individuals who contracted the disease were treated poorly by medical professionals, the public, and the press.

Aidsmap, a UK-based charity that shares information about HIV & AIDS, shared testimonials from men who were treated for mpox to highlight the intense stigma they experienced. One man recalled: “I was receiving a lot of homophobic abuse. Not just from straight people, but I was getting it from the LGBT community as well. They were calling me disgusting, had I learnt nothing from COVID? Likening monkeypox to the AIDS crisis and all that kind of stuff.”

For members of the LGBTQIA+ community, medical bias is an everyday reality. While it’s essential to stay informed about mpox, weaponising fear to discriminate against a community is really not it.

The most common symptoms of mpox include rashes, painful lesions, fever, headaches, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes.

The rashes can appear almost anywhere on the body, but they often cluster on the soles of your feet, hands, groin, and throat.

While not everyone who contracts mpox will require hospitalisation, the infection can at times be fatal. According to WHO, between 0.1 per cent and 10 per cent of those infected with mpox have died.

According to The Independent, there have been no reported cases of the deadliest strain of mpox in the UK. Dr Meera Chand, deputy director of the UK Health Security Agency, said: “The risk to the UK population is currently considered low. However, planning is under way to prepare for any cases that we might see in the UK.”

While the UK isn’t planning to implement any travel restrictions, Spain—having donated 500,000 doses of the mpox vaccine to help combat the outbreak in Africa—has announced increased health checks at airports to try and prevent the disease from spreading across its borders.

Mpox shouldn’t be keeping you up at night, but I would definitely recommend turning on those Google notifications. Stay safe, queens.