§ Mr. Hastingsasked the Minister of Health whether, in view of the fact that alcoholic sclerosis of the liver is a notifiable disease and that in cases of death from it an inquest is sometimes held, he will give consideration to making cancer of the lung also notifiable so that an inquest may be held where there is strong presumptive evidence of the association between this disease and cigarette smoking.
§ Mr. Walker-SmithI assume that the hon. Member has in mind those deaths which are required to be reported to a coroner. Since neither an inquest nor apost mortem examination could prove that in a person dying of cancer of the lung this had been caused by cigarette smoking, the reporting of such deaths to a coroner would seem to have no medical justification and would cause unnecessary distress.