Monkeypox is Not a Gay Disease

In recent weeks multiple cases of confirmed and suspected monkeypox infections have been reported in three European countries. The initial cluster of cases which first appeared in the United Kingdom so far includes four men who identify as gay or bisexual or other men who have sex with men (MSM). The narrative emerging as this outbreak evolves to involve other European countries, Canada and the United States is sadly reminiscent of initial reporting on pneumocystis pneumonia clusters in gay men with AIDS forty years ago. Monkeypox is not a gay disease and neither are any other infectious diseases. It is unfortunate that this still needs to be said, highlighting how little we have learned from previous outbreaks.

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