HC Deb 27 November 1984 vol 68 c420W
Mr. Ashley

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the secretor status of a dead person is determined; how reliable is the test; and in what circumstances there is a risk of contamination invalidating the test.

Mr. Brittan

The secretor status of a dead person can be determined by a form of blood grouping (the Lewis group system) or by the grouping of the saliva on a mouth swab. The reliability of the tests depends on the condition of the samples; tests on badly contaminated samples may not be reliable and should not be used.