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Doses of smallpox/monkeypox vaccines are ready for measuring and administering at the Cell Block Chicago club on Aug. 6, 2022.
John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune
Doses of smallpox/monkeypox vaccines are ready for measuring and administering at the Cell Block Chicago club on Aug. 6, 2022.
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The monkeypox virus first appeared in Illinois in early June, weeks after it spread to America in a global outbreak. The smallpox-related illness was first detected in humans in 1970 and is endemic to parts of west and central Africa. The dangerous virus can cause flu-like symptoms, swollen lymph nodes and painful, large rashes throughout the body and often around the genital area akin to pimples or blisters.