Monkeypox 'to be given new name by WHO to destigmatise the virus'

Monkeypox could be renamed as “MPOX” in a bid to remove any stigma that exists over the virus that has spread in a global outbreak this year, it is reported.

United States officials are believed to have put pressure on the World Health Organisation to change the name and warned they could act unilaterally if no action was taken.

And now the decision to change the name of the virus to MPOX could be made on Wednesday, say three Politico sources.

The WHO had already agreed to consider alternatives to the monkeypox name.

After a rapid global spread earlier in the year it has since slowed down but officials from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have said that it is unlikely that the virus will be eliminated.

The WHO wants to rename monkeypox to get rid of stigma around the virus (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

There has also been stigma attached to the virus which has seen its spread fastest through men who are gay or bisexual.

And the Biden administration has been worried that people of colour have also been victimised with virus outbreaks typically having taken place in Africa in the past, reported Politico.

Some US public health experts and gay rights activists have been pushing for a change of name.

A group of scientists wrote a joint statement in June titled “Urgent need for a non-discriminatory and non-stigmatizing nomenclature for monkeypox virus”.

It stated: “In the context of the current global outbreak, continued reference to, and nomenclature of this virus being African is not only inaccurate but is also discriminatory and stigmatizing.”

Meanwhile, CDC director of science, Marc Lipsitch, said the virus is likely to be a continuing threat over the coming years.

While the virus has mainly spread among gay and bisexual men, health officials continue to stress that anyone can be infected, says Lipsitch, who said it's important that people at risk take steps to prevent spread and that vaccination efforts continue.

Lipsitch attributed the good news about the spread of the virus slowing to increasing vaccinations, cautious behaviour by people at risk and infection-derived immunity in the highest risk populations.