The number of confirmed cases of measles in the Swansea epidemic has risen to 588, says Public Health Wales.
The latest figure shows 40 new cases of the disease since Wednesday.
Up to 20 new cases a day are being reported by GPs, with 109 new cases in a week over the Easter period.
Health officials estimate about 3,800 children in the Swansea area have still not had the MMR vaccine and parents are being asked to act.
Special vaccination clinics have been arranged for this weekend, as the virus spreads to neighbouring areas.
Dr Marion Lyons, head of health protection for Public Health Wales (PHW), has also revealed that the source of the original infection is thought to be linked to a group event for children held in England.
"Children acquired measles infections at a camp in England, returned to Wales and introduced it to the local schools," she told the BBC's Today programme.
"When children get together at various athletic events, we do see the spread to other areas, because children meet together, it's highly infectious and they will spread the infection."
Historic problemPublic health officials said take-up for the MMR vaccine in south Wales dropped significantly in the late 1990s when research - since discredited - raised concerns over the jab.
CASE STUDY
Craig Thomas's children Chloe, 15, Jordan, 14, and Kieron, nine, of Morriston, Swansea, have all had measles in the epidemic.
"To see what these kids have been through - it's been devastating," said Mr Thomas.
"Sleepless nights for them, not eating. My daughter lost half-a-stone in weight.
"Kieron, the first day he had the spots, it wasn't just the spots, it wasn't just the rash, it was his neck - it kept swelling.
"Years ago we were reading what was in the media, parents saying 'don't have it done', basically."
But while concerns about the MMR vaccination were later discredited, the Thomas children never had their jabs.
"We never thought it would happen to the kids, and if I could turn back time, I would turn the clocks back," said the children's father.
"To see them go through this, it was unbelievable."
Mr Thomas urged others to "act now" and get their children vaccinated.
"Don't wait, get it done as soon as you can. It's a serious, dangerous virus.
"It's been horrible, an absolutely rough rollercoaster ride."
Son Jordan said of his illness: "Dizziness, then a cold, I couldn't sleep and was not eating. It was horrible."
"What we would like to see is a 95% uptake rate for the two-year-olds and the children of five," said Dr Lyons.
"We have achieved that again in Swansea, but there was a period when the uptake rate was lower and significantly lower than the rest of Wales."
According to Dr Lyons, one-in-six children in the Swansea area have never had the MMR vaccination, while in the rest of Wales it is only one-in-ten children.
"In the Swansea area where we have the outbreak, we have a decade of children aged between seven and 15 whose vaccination uptake rates are much lower than the rest of Wales," she said.
"So inevitably, there are a lot of susceptible children and it is spreading fast in that age group."
Figures due to be published on Friday will point to just how fast the infection is continuing to spread.
"It will spread further," warned Dr Lyons.
"I haven't seen the figures for today, but I do know that we are receiving notifications of between 15 and 20 cases every day in Wales."
Jab clinicsPHW has said cases continue to be reported across the country, with the majority in the Abertawe Bro Morgannwg, Powys and Hywel Dda health board areas.
It warned that the risk of unvaccinated children coming into contact with those already infected was "increasing every day".
Public health officials added that it was "just a matter of time" before a child was left with serious and permanent complications, such as eye disorders, deafness or brain damage, or even dies.
Drop-in MMR vaccination clinics will be held between 10:00 BST and 16:00 BST on Saturday at Morriston and Singleton hospitals in Swansea, Princess of Wales Hospital, Bridgend, and Neath Port Talbot Hospital.
Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board said no appointments were necessary and, while they were targeting children and adolescents who had not had their scheduled MMR jabs, no-one would be turned away including adults.
Some GP surgeries have responded to the epidemic by offering extra clinics for the MMR vaccine.
The measles outbreak centred on Swansea is certainly significant.
Experts in Wales fear it could reach the level of the Dublin outbreak of 1999-2000 when more than 1,200 children were affected and three died.
There have been other smaller outbreaks more recently in England, including one last year which was centred around Merseyside.
But in the whole of the north west in 2012 there were just 865 measles cases.
Most of the more than 500 people affected in Wales are school-age children who have not had the MMR jab.
Vaccine uptake in the affected areas is around 89%.
Children or teenagers who have not been immunised can go to their GP at any time to get the MMR jab.
Check with your GP surgery if you are in doubt whether you or your child is protected.
The Swansea East assembly member, Mike Hedges, has urged parents to take-up the vaccination offers after his own personal experience of the disease.
He told BBC Radio Wales that he and his sister contracted measles as young children, with devastating results.
"I had it very badly and they were concerned about my eyesight, but fortunately I was unaffected," he explained.
"My sister was nowhere near so lucky. She ended up profoundly deaf at the end of it."
"I'm calling for everybody to have the vaccination. My daughter, who is now 14, had the vaccination at the earliest possible opportunity to ensure she didn't suffer as both my sister and I did.
"You can't force people to do it, but I think that those people whose children have had measles really now regret that they didn't have their children immunised. They've seen just how serious an illness it is."
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