Seoul, Ramadan 5, 1436 AH, June 22, 2015, SPA -- Two people died in South Korea of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), and three others were diagnosed, officials said Monday, dpa reported. The latest cases, which included a 97-year-old man being treated for cancer, brought the death toll to 27 in the recent outbreak, and the total number of confirmed cases to 172, the Health Ministry said. The latest fatalities, both over 80, were already being monitored because the patients had had close contacts with other MERS cases, the ministry said. The number of people in isolation after suspected exposure fell Monday to 3,833 from 4,035, the report said. Around 9,300 people have been held and released after the 14-day incubation period since the outbreak started a month ago. The fatality rate, which was around 40 per cent in the Middle East where the virus was originally identified three years ago, has crept up from under 10 per cent to the current level of 14 per cent in South Korea, the Health Ministry said last week. -- SPA 12:42 LOCAL TIME 09:42 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w