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9 Dec 2003 : Column 366W—continued
Non-departmental Public Bodies
23. Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for health if he will make a statement on plans to review the number of health service non-departmental public bodies. [142566]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Secretary of State for Health announced his intention to review the Department's non-departmental public bodies along with its other arm's length organisations to the Health Committee on 30 October. We want to ensure that roles of the Department's arm's length bodies are in line with current expectations and that the oversight of front-line health and social services is kept to an acceptable minimum. We expect that the review will reach its conclusions by the middle of next year.
Alcohol Treatment Programmes
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects the Government's strategy document on alcohol treatment to be published; what the reason for the delay is; and if he will make a statement. [141984]
Ms Blears: I have been asked to reply.
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On 19 September the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit published their Interim Analytical Report on the harms associated with alcohol misuse. This will help inform the development of the cross-governmental alcohol harm reduction strategy for England. The final report setting out the strategy will be published in time for implementation to begin in 2004, and in line with commitments given in the NHS Plan.
Alzheimer's
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence of Ebixa as a treatment for Alzheimer's; which health authorities have allowed it to be prescribed; and if he will make a statement on the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery and the use of Ebixa. [141415]
Dr. Ladyman: The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) is appraising memantine (Ebixa) as part of the eighth wave of its work programme. The anticipated publication date of its guidance is May 2005.
The Department has asked national health service bodies (in HSC 1999/176) to continue with local arrangements for the managed introduction of new technologies, including drugs such as memantine, where guidance from NICE is not published at the time the technology first became available. These arrangements should involve an assessment of all the available evidence. Information about which NHS bodies are currently allowing memantine to be prescribed is not collected centrally, but data collected about prescribing shows that memantine has been prescribed on the NHS in all strategic health authority areas.
The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery medical committee has considered the use of memantine and has agreed to prescribe it under certain protocols and shared care agreements.
Chiropody/Podiatry
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received on chiropody and podiatry. [142550]
Dr. Ladyman: In the last three months we have received an estimated 22 representations on chiropody and podiatry from right hon. and hon. Members, representations from the other place and relevant organisations and others.
Contaminated Blood Products
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people died in each of the last five years as a result of contamination by blood products (a) from HIV/AIDS, (b) from hepatitis C and (c) co-infected with HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C; and how many who were found to be suffering from each such contamination in each of those years remain alive. [142588]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The number of haemophilia patients infected with HIV/AIDS from infected national health service blood products registered with the Macfarlane Trust who have died in the last five years are shown in the table.
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| Number | |
|---|---|
| 1998 | 22 |
| 1999 | 19 |
| 2000 | 24 |
| 2001 | 13 |
| 2002 | 12 |
The total number of registrants who remain alive is 397.
Information on the total number of patients who have died in each of the last five years from hepatitis C as a result of infection through NHS blood products and the number who remain alive in each of those years is not collected.
The figure on the total number of patients co-infected with HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C who have died in each of the last five years is not collected. The latest information from the United Kingdom Haemophilia Centre Doctors Organisations shows the total number of co-infected patients alive at 1 January 2000 is 469.
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will make a statement on deaths of people with haemophilia from hepatitis as a result of receiving contaminated transmissions of blood within the NHS; [143115]
- (2) if he will make a statement on the levels of compensation payments offered to people who have contracted hepatitis as a result of receiving contaminated blood; [143116]
(3) what plans he has to compensate the relatives of patients who have died through having received contaminated blood on the NHS. [143117]
Miss Melanie Johnson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Portsmouth, South (Mr. Hancock) on 19 November 2003, Official Report, column 1106W.
Mr. Truswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in (a) Leeds and (b) the UK have contracted (i) HIV and (ii) hepatitis C as a result of being given contaminated blood products; and how many (A) have died, (B) cleared the virus and (C) remain infected in each case. [143183]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Figures for the Leeds area are not available.
The number of people directly infected with HIV/AIDS as a result of National Health Service treatment with blood or blood products and who have been or are currently registered with the Macfarlane and Eileen Trusts in the United Kingdom is 1284.
The total number of Macfarlane and Eileen Trust registrants who have died is 876.
The number of people who have been infected with HIV as a result of NHS treatment with blood or blood products and cleared the virus is not known but is presumed to be zero.
The number of Macfarlane and Eileen Trust registrants who were directly infected with HIV as a result of NHS treatment with blood or blood products and who remain infected is 408.
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Following the announcement of a financial assistance scheme for those inadvertently infected with hepatitis C, figures for the number of people infected, the number of people who have died and the number of people who remain infected are still being finalised.
Genetics White Paper
Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will announce the successful bids for research funding arising out of the White Paper on Genetics. [142563]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Commissioning Groups considering submitted proposals for research on gene therapy for single gene disorders, including cystic fibrosis, and on pharmacogenetics are to meet early next year to identify successful applicants. Details of the successful bids will be published in the National Research Register located on the Department's web site at www.doh.gov.uk/research/nrr.htm.
HIV/AIDS
Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the incidence of HIV/AIDS in the UK; and what change there has been in the incidence in the last 10 years. [141328]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The numbers of new diagnoses of HIV infection reported in the UK for the last 10 years are shown in the table. These are a mixture of new (incident) cases and new diagnoses of longer-standing infections.
| Year of diagnosis | Number of HIV infected individuals(4) |
|---|---|
| 1993 | 2,621 |
| 1994 | 2,574 |
| 1995 | 2,653 |
| 1996 | 2,692 |
| 1997 | 2,737 |
| 1998 | 2,818 |
| 1999 | 3,072 |
| 2000 | 3,825 |
| 2001 | 4,982 |
| 2002 | 5,711 |
(4) Numbers, particularly for recent years, will rise as further reports are received.
Source:
Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre, Health Protection Agency, data to the end of September 2003.
Hormone Replacement Therapy
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what advice the Government are providing for women on hormone replacement therapy regarding the risk of breast cancer; and if he will make a statement. [141847]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) and its expert working group on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) have kept the safety of HRT under constant review and provided targeted advice to women and health professionals in response to important new evidence as it has emerged.
In August 2003, the United Kingdom "Million Women" study provided important new information about the risks of breast cancer in long term HRT users.
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On the day of publication, the CSM informed women of the increase in risk that was observed in association with each different type of HRT preparation. The CSM further advised that these risks increase the longer that HRT is used, but return to normal within five years of stopping HRT. All women using HRT have been encouraged to attend regular breast screening and regularly check their breasts for any changes. Women have also been advised not to use HRT if they have breast cancer or if they have had it in the past.
In addition, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has placed a comprehensive review of the risks, including breast cancer, associated with HRT use for women on its website. Detailed information has also been published in the safety bulletins issued by the MHRA and the Chief Medical Officer, which are also available on their respective websites.
The patient information leaflet that accompanies each pack of medicine has contained information about the risk of breast cancer in association with HRT use for some years. This information has been regularly updated to fully reflect all important new evidence as it has become available.
Very recently, a Europe-wide review of the overall risks and benefits of HRT has been completed. UK experts participated in this review and the CSM has endorsed its recommendations, published on 3 December 2003, that HRT should no longer be considered as the first choice treatment for the prevention of osteoporosis, for women over the age of 50 years. As with earlier advice, this information has been made available to health professionals and women through targeted communications and the MHRA website.
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