China's Ministry of Health said yesterday that a suspected SARS patient in Guangdong Province is in stable condition and his body temperature has been normal for four days.

　　No one who was in close contact with the patient has shown any symptoms of the virus, the ministry said.

　　The patient, a 32-year-old freelance TV producer, lives in the Panyu District of Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province. He had a fever and a headache on December 16 and went to see a doctor four days later. He was diagnosed with pneumonia at No 1 Hospital affiliated to Zhongshan University. He was transferred to the quarantine ward of Guangzhou No 8 People's Hospital on December 24.

　　The patient's condition is stable, said a doctor at the No 8 People's Hospital, but he remains in quarantine.

　　Health officials still don't know how the man was infected with the virus.

　　Wang Zhiqiong, deputy head of the provincial health department, said that the patient claimed he has stayed in Guangzhou City and not eaten any wild animals for more than a month.

　　The ministry has reported the case to the World Health Organization and officials in Guangdong have also informed neighboring Hong Kong and Macau.

　　This is the first suspected SARS case on China's mainland since the WHO lifted a SARS-related travel advisory about Guangdong on May 23.

　　Officials with the WHO said in Beijing on Saturday that there is no reason for public panic over the reported case.

　　"We are convinced that the Chinese authorities will work very hard to ensure there will not be a big outbreak," WHO China office Representative Henk Bekedam said.

　　Bekedam said if the suspected case in Guangdong is an isolated one and the necessary preventative measures have been taken, a large SARS outbreak is not likely.

　　"But the Guangdong case is a good reminder to us," he said, adding that the case shows that SARS could return at any time, and the health authorities should remain vigilant and disease surveillance and precautions measures should be enforced.

　　"It's now important for the public to stay informed of the latest SARS information, and understand what is happening," he said.

　　Julie Hall, SARS team leader of the WHO China office, said that the Chinese Health Ministry has asked for the WHO's assistance, and WHO experts will arrive in Beijing today. "We are now discussing with the Health Ministry a visit to Guangdong," she said.