“We can’t control this”: number of monkey pox cases in Belgium rises to 224

Most of the virus is transmitted through skin-to-skin contact. “At the moment it is often about sexual contact with men who have sex with men”, Marc Van Ranst concludes. But, the virologist continues, “in countries where there are relatively more cases, the virus is gradually spreading in the rest of the population.”

In order to curb the further spread of the virus, the groups that are currently most at risk of being infected – men and sex workers – should now ideally be vaccinated preventively, says Van Ranst.