Health authorities may declare the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo officially over by early December if no new cases are detected before then, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced, citing Xinhua.

According to WHO’s Regional Office for Africa, the announcement comes after the last patient hospitalized with Ebola fully recovered and was discharged from the treatment center — a major milestone in the country’s fight against the deadly virus.

“This discharge marks the beginning of a 42-day countdown, after which the outbreak can be officially declared over if no new cases are detected,” the statement said.

Since the outbreak was declared on September 4, a total of 64 cases have been reported in the Bulape health zone of Kasai Province in central DRC, including 53 confirmed and 11 probable cases. WHO reported that 19 patients have recovered, and no new cases have been registered since September 25.

The DRC had previously declared its 15th Ebola outbreak over in September 2022, which had originated in North Kivu Province.