A seventh person suffering from amysterious respiratory disease has died in Hong Kong, as health officials reported todaythey had made progress in identifying the deadly virus.
Fifteen deaths internationally have been blamed on the highly-contagious disease which is the subject of an alert from the World Health Organisation.
Hong Kong health officials said the latest death involved a manin his 70s who contracted Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).He had also been suffering from a blood disease.
The number of patients in the territory diagnosed with SARS roseby 19 to 222 today.
The latest death came as the WHO reported yesterday that a laboratory had succeededin growing, in cell culture, an infectious agent that might be thecause of SARS.
The discovery was described by WHO as the "first important steptowards the development of a diagnostic test" for the virus, whichhas killed seven people in Hong Kong, two in Canada and two inVietnam.
"This is not just some light at the end of the tunnel," said WHOvirologist Mr Klaus Stohr, who is coordinating efforts between 11medical laboratories in 10 countries. "This is a real ray ofsunshine."
WHO regional director Mr Shigeru Omi issued a note of caution,however, after meeting here with Hong Kong health chief Mr YeohEng-kiong and Chinese Minister of Health Mr Zhang Wenkang.
"We should not get carried away," Mr Omi said. "These arejust preliminary tests. This is a challenge ... we must re-doubleour efforts to find the source and prevent the spread of the diseasearound the world."
Meanwhile, The Western Health Board continues to monitor a probable case of SARS at Mayo General Hospital in Castlebar.
The case is a middle-aged man who returned from Hong Kong last weekend.
It is understood that the man, who was described yesterday as "not critical", has family in south-east Asia, and stayed on the 11th floor of a hotel there while visiting them earlier this month.