Naming a disease, a real headache

LWords matter, and the World Health Organization (WHO) knows that. While the number of cases of monkeypox has tripled in Europe, the Organization devoted a world summit on June 23 to the virus which worries the continent. On the agenda, in particular, the question of a new name for the disease. “We will make announcements on the new names as soon as possible,” promised its managing director, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, during a press conference. Two weeks after the announcement of the boss of the WHO, scientists are still scratching their heads to find him a new baptismal name. The current name indeed combines two pitfalls: it is both frightening for the sick – who want to be affected by a virus whose…