The Love Tank urges mpox vaccination uptake as new European cases identified

The Love Tank joins other organisations - including the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), NHS England, the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV (BASHH), the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), and other community-based organisations - in calling for uptake of mpox vaccinations (formerly called monkeypox) as new cases are identified in Europe and the USA.

Unlike the clade IIb cases seen in 2022 - which were predominantly diagnosed in men who have sex with men - the new cases are clade Ib. Clade Ib mpox diagnosed in Europe has most recently been travel-related (that is, someone visited an area of the world where clade Ib is more common and acquired mpox there but were usually diagnosed in their home-country).

Public health officials have raised concerns that many of the new clade Ib cases are not related to travel, and that clade Ib transmission is happening locally. The new diagnoses are being made in men - some of whom identify as gay or bisexual - with no recent travel to mpox-endemic areas. 

Dr Will Nutland, Director at The Love Tank says:

“Mpox hasn’t been making headlines for more than a year but these cases show that mpox has not gone away. The new cases suggest there's on-going clade Ib transmission in some sexual networks of men-who-have-sex-with-men in Europe."

Gay and bisexual men - especially those with higher numbers of sexual partners, and those having group sex - are urged to ensure they have received both vaccinations for mpox.

Nutland continues:

"Routine availability of mpox vaccination, through NHS sexual health clinics, provides an effective way of protecting against mpox. The Love Tank continues to work alongside NHS colleagues to ensure that vaccination programmes continue to reach those who most need them, including in community settings”.

Vaccination on the NHS is free for any eligible individual, regardless of immigration status.

Gay and bisexual men are also being advised to look out for mpox symptoms that can include rashes or lesions, sometimes accompanied by fever, cough or flu-like symptoms.

Further information is available at www.queerhealth.info/mpox