BBC OS Conversations: What's it like to have mpox

The Documentary Podcast

Mpox causes a headache, fever and a blistering rash all over the body. There have been more than 1,200 cases in parts of Central and West Africa since the start of this year. The milder version is now circulating in other parts of the world but the much stronger, possibly deadlier strain, called Clade 1b is also on the rise. A few weeks ago, the World Health Organisation announced that mpox constituted a public health emergency of international concern after an upsurge of cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and other countries in Africa. Host Luke Jones brings together survivors from the UK and Nigeria to share their experiences. “I thought that I was dying,” said Harun in London. “Nobody knew what it was and I was getting worse every day. I remember looking at a bottle of water and I started crying because I wasn’t able to drink.” We also hear from three doctors about some of the challenges they face - from a mistrust in medical professionals, to a belief that mpox is not caused by a virus and so doesn’t require hospital treatment. “An elderly man started developing symptoms but felt his symptoms were not due to any pathogen but due to a spiritual attack,” said Dr Dimie Ogoina, from the Niger Delta Teaching hospital. A co-production between Boffin Media and the BBC OS team. (Photo: Elisabeth Furaha applies medication on the skin of her child Sagesse Hakizimana who is under treatment for Mpox, near Goma in North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo August 19, 2024. Credit: Arlette Bashizi/File Photo/Reuters)