§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the work of the Committee on Dangerous Pathogens in relation to Xenotransplantation. [52352]
§ Ms JowellThe Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens (ACDP) considered the risks of infectious disease associated with xenotransplantation in 1996 and jointly hosted a workshop on 'Infectious Disease and Xenotransplantation' with the Advisory Group on Ethics of Xenotransplantation. The report of this workshop was published in January 1997 as part of the advisory group's report 'Animal Tissue into Humans'. Additionally the ACDP have advised the Medicines Control Agency and Gene Therapy Advisory Committee on the infection risks posed by a gene therapy trial.
The ACDP is currently convening a meeting of experts to assess the risks of various types of xenotransplant and will provide advice on these issues to the United Kingdom Xenotransplantation Interim Regulatory Authority.