"The Province of Quebec has been informed that a positive monkeypox screening result was obtained for two samples received by the National Microbiology Laboratory. These are the first two confirmed cases in Canada", explains the Public Health Agency of Canada in a press release.
Other suspected cases are being studied in the French-speaking metropolis Montreal, said Canadian authorities.
During a press conference in the morning, the regional management of public health in Montreal had mentioned 17 suspected cases.
Several dozen suspected or confirmed cases of monkeypox have been detected since the beginning of May in Europe and North America, raising fears of the start of the spread of this disease.
Uncommon, the latter usually manifests as fever, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes, and rashes on the hands and face, like chickenpox.
Monkeypox or "simian orthopoxvirus" is a rare disease whose pathogen can be transmitted from animals to humans and vice versa.
When the virus reaches humans, it is mainly from various wild animals, rodents or primates for example.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday it is taking a close interest that some of the cases in the UK appear to have been passed on within the gay community.
© 2022 AFP