Suspected Sars victim 'responding'

A man who may have become the sixth person in the UK to have fallen victim to the deadly Sars virus is said to be responding well to treatment.

The man, who has not been named, is thought to have caught the flu-like virus in Britain after coming into contact with a Hong Kong businessman who was subsequently admitted to hospital in his own country with symptoms.

A spokesman for London's Northwick Park Hospital, where the British man is being treated, said he was responding well to treatment and was not feeling sick.

"It is still a suspected case and we are not expected to get any further information or confirmation this weekend.

"He is still in isolation as is the case with all the patients on the infectious diseases ward.

"We take swabs on a continuous basis to establish whether or not this is Sars," the spokesman said.

In a joint statement from the Department of Health and the Health Protection Agency yesterday, the man's symptoms were said to "fit the case definition of Sars issued by the World Health Organisation".

"Other people who were in close contact with him in the UK are being traced and will be monitored in case they develop any symptoms of Sars," the statement added.

Four of the other UK probable cases have all now recovered and have been discharged from hospital.

The fifth person, who is being treated in North Manchester General Hospital, is in a stable condition. "There is no evidence of any transmission of Sars in the UK from any of these five people," a Health Protection Agency spokeswoman said.

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