§ Mr. Mike Thomasasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the outcome of the studies made by his Department as to the proportion of new drugs introduced into the United Kingdom in the last 10 years that represented a therapeutic advance.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergA scrutiny of product licences granted during the period 1971–1981—the most recent period for which this information is available—identified 204 new chemical entities, and six entirely new therapeutic concepts. Since modification made in the system of clinical trials in March 1981, the number of
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§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergNo information is available on family treatment costs as such, but an estimate of average hospital community health service and family practitioner service expenditure on families according to size and composition can be derived from estimated current expenditure per head by age groups. For 1980–81 in England the figures were:
exemptions granted in the period April 1981 to September 1982 has been 362, including 112 new chemical entities, compared with a total of 1,202 clinical trials certificates granted over the period September 1971 to December 1980.
However, the question of "therapeutic advance" is a very complex one. A judgment on this matter must often be subjective and therefore variable. Furthermore, the full therapeutical value of any product may not emerge for many years. Finally, therapeutic advances are not confined to new chemical entities, but may involve new drug delivery systems, new therapeutic uses for existing preparations, or new formulations that lead to better patient compliance.