§ Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many operations of orchiectomy have been performed in trials sponsored by the Medical Research Council during the last seven years; and if alternative therapies were considered in each particular case.
§ Mr. WaldenI understand that orchiectomy is a recognised form of treatment for testicular and prostatic cancer. Between 1979 and 1985, 196 orchiectomies have been performed in multicentre collaborative trials of cancer treatment sponsored by the Medical Research Council (MRC); since then a further 91 patients have been designated to receive immediate orchiectomy in the current MRC sponsored trial in prostatic cancer involving