§ Mr. WyattTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many primates have been used in the years since 1995 in research involving pig kidneys and pig hearts being transplanted into primates; and what percentage of these primates have rejected the transplanted organs. [129961]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe number used in xenotransplantation research in each of the last four years for which information is available is as follows:
- 1996–60
- 1997–83
- 1998–81
- 1999–49.
The majority of the primates were euthanased once they began to show clinical or biochemical evidence of terminal organ failure or when their clinical condition began to give rise for concern.