§ Mr. John Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on the technological and other benefits for general heart surgery that has come from heart transplants.
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§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeHeart transplants have been performed at Papworth hospital since January 1979 and at Harefield hospital since January 1980. Initially they were funded mainly from charitable and voluntary sources which continued until 1982. To enable heart transplantation to continue while its costs and benefits are being evaluated, we then authorised departmental grants to the two centres which have amounted to £200,000 for each of them in the current financial year.
We have now received the interim report of the research study sponsored by the Department.
Because of the practical and ethical difficulties, it was not possible to mount a controlled clinical trial so the value of heart transplants cannot be stated conclusively at this stage. However, an increasing proportion of patients are living longer and are enjoying a better quality of life. The cost of each operation has also shown a tendency to decline. The report has been considered by the Transplant Advisory Panel and the Standing Medical Advisory Committee which have both advised the Government that the present evidence justifies a continued programme of heart transplantation in the National Health Service.
In the light of this advice we have decided to continue the Department's support, at the level of £218,000 each for Papworth and Harefield in 1984–85.
It is too early to make a full and final assessment of the indirect benefits of heart transplantation. It has contributed to advances in the field of immunology and immu-nosuppression and in the development of cardiac biopsy as a routine diagnostic tool. However, the direct benefit to patients receiving a transplant is the main justification for the procedure.
Decisions on the provision and funding of heart transplantation in the longer term will be taken in the light of the final report of the research study which is due at the end of 1984.
§ Mr. John Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish a list of National Health Service hospitals offering heart transplants together with the number of days each patient has lived after surgery in the past 24 months.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeHeart transplants are currently performed at Hare field hospital, Middlesex and Papworth hospital, Cambridge. The following tables show, for each hospital, the dates of all transplants performed since 1 February 1982 with the date of the patient's death (where applicable) and the survival time in days of the patients who have died.
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Harefield Date of Operation Date of Death (A= patient still alive) Days Survived (by patients who have now died) 26.2.1982 A — 6.3.1982 A — 10.3.1982 3.6.1982 85 16.3.1982 4.4.1982 19 28.3.1982 3.6.1982 67 2.5.1982 A — 4.5.1982 A — 19.5.1982 18.6.1982 30 20.5.1982 A — 8.7.1982 A — 15.7.1982 21.9.1982 78 16.9.1982 A — 20.10.1982 A —
Date of Operation Date of Death (A= patient still alive) Days Survived (by patients who have now died) 9.11.1982 A — 10.11.1982 10.12.1982 30 7.12.1982 23.12.1982 16 13.12.1982 14.12.1982 1 16.1.1983 A — 1.2.1983 A — 8.2.1983 A — 20.2.1983 A — 7.3.1983 A — 16.3.1983 A — 28.3.1983 30.3.1983 2 21.4.1983 A — 24.4.1983 A — 27.4.1983 A — 11.5.1983 A — 22.5.1983 A — 28.5.1983 A — 1.6.1983 A — 14.6.1983 A — 16.6.1983 A — 30.6.1983 15.8.1983 46 28.7.1983 A — 29.7.1983 A — 16.8.1983 A — 17.8.1983 A — 19.8.1983 22.9.1983 34 4.9.1983 22.9.1983 18 7.9.1983 A — 10.9.1983 A — 19.9.1983 A — 21.9.1983 A — 5.10.1983 A — 6.10.1983 19.11.1983 43 14.10.1983 A — 24.10.1983 A — 30.10.1983 A — 22.11.1983 A — 6.12.1983 20.12.1983 14 16.12.1983 A — 10.1.1984 A — 12.1.1984 A — 27.1.1984 A — 28.1.1984 A — 29.1.1984 A —
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Papworth Date of Operation Date of Death (A= patient still alive) Days Survived (by patients who have now died) 22.2.1982 28.2.1982 6 25.2.1982 A — 10.3.1982 A — '30.3.1982 A — 9.4.1982 19.4.1982 10 24.4.1982 26.5.1982 32 14.5.1982 A — 2.6.1982 A — 12.6.1982 A — 25.6.1982 A — 13.7.1982 A — 15.8.1982 14.11.1983 456 15.9.1982 A — 18.10.1982 11.11.1982 23 22.11.1982 A — 5.12.1982 16.12.1982 11 16.2.1983 1.5.1983 74 1.3.1983 A — 5.3.1983 A — 3.4.1983 A — 13.4.1983 A — 16.4.1983 A — 4.5.1983 A — 25.5.1983 A —
Date of Operation Date of Death (A= patient still alive) Days Survived (by patients who have now died) 6.6.1983 20.6.1983 *14 22.6.1983 A — 6.8.1983 A — 27.8.1983 A — 4.9.1983 A — 22.9.1983 A — 25.9.1983 A — 17.10.1983 A — 18.11.1983 A — 23.11.1983 A — 30.12.1983 19.1.1984 20 20.1.1984 †30.1.1984 ‡10 30.1.1984 21.1.1984 A — 2.2.1984 A — * The same patient previously received a transplant on 4 June 1980. † Two operations on the same patient. ‡ From first operation.
§ Mr. John Wellsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will give the direct costs of heart transplants surgery in each National Health Service hospital that offers such facilities over the past 24 months.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeThe research study sponsored by the Department is intended to identify the costs and benefits of the current heart transplantation programmes at both Papworth and Harefield hospitals. We have now received the interim report of this study, but the assessment of costs is still subject to a number of uncertainties and it would be misleading to ascribe a single overall cost to the operation in advance of the final report.