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French hantavirus patient is critically ill and on an artificial lung

A French hantavirus patient is critically ill and is using an artificial lung to breathe, it's been revealed, as the number of people suspected to have contracted the deadly virus on board a cruise ship grows to 11.

Nine hantavirus cases have been confirmed worldwide, while there are a further two suspected, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed.

All cases were passengers on board the MV Hondius cruise ​ship.

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The ill woman is one of five French cruise ship passengers flown back from the liner and placed in isolation in Paris.

She is currently being treated in intensive care at Bichat Hospital in France battling a life-threatening case of the rare disease, Dr Xavier Lescure told local media at the French health ministry.

"The patient now has the most severe form of cardiopulmonary presentation," Lescure told the press conference.

"She is on an artificial lung and a blood bypass to allow her, we hope, to get through this stage."

The hope is that the device relieves enough pressure on the lungs and heart to give them some time to recover.

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Hondius

Lescure called it "the final stage of supportive care".

She is older than 65 and has pre-existing conditions, he said.

With the evacuation of all passengers and many crew members completed, the MV Hondius is now sailing back to the Netherlands, where it will be cleaned and disinfected.

Despite the rise in hantavirus cases, the WHO says the risk of a wider outbreak remains low.

"At the moment, there is no sign that we are seeing the start of a larger outbreak," Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

"But of course the situation could change, and given the long incubation period of the virus, it's possible we might see more cases in the coming weeks."

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The latest person confirmed to be infected is a Spanish passenger who tested positive after being evacuated from the ship, Spain's health ministry said.

The passenger was in quarantine at a military hospital in Madrid.

Six people – four Australians, one permanent resident and a New Zealander – are currently in isolation in the Netherlands, preparing to board a specially chartered flight to Perth, where they will undergo a further three-week quarantine.

No vaccine or specific treatment exists for hantavirus.

The fatality rate for the disease varies by type but can be as high as 50 per cent, although early detection and treatment improve survival rates.

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