The family of an American man detained in North Korea says he's been hospitalized, and the need to bring him home is becoming more urgent.

Terri Chung is the sister of Kenneth Bae, a tour operator and Christian missionary who has been detained for the past nine months. She said Sunday the family recently learned her 45-year-old brother, who suffers from an enlarged heart, liver problems and back pain, has been transferred from a labor camp to a hospital.

She says a deputy ambassador from Sweden met with Bae at the hospital Friday. Sweden acts on behalf of American interests in Pyongyang because the U.S. has no diplomatic relations with North Korea.

Bae was sentenced to 15 years hard labor for alleged subversive activities. His sister says he has lost more than 50 pounds.

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