§ Lord Morris of Manchesterasked Her Majesty's Government:
Futher to the answers by the Lord Hunt of Kings Heath concerning recombinant treatment for people with haemophilia on 6 February (HL Deb, cols. 629–30), whether they will now set out in detail the basis on which it was stated that there is no evidence "that recombinant clotting factors are more efficacious than plasma-based products" or "that there is an issue of safety between different products"; and whether they will provide the sources that justify both statements. [HL2781]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath)It is generally accepted by United Kingdom clinicians that recombinant and plasma derived clotting factors are equally effective in treating clotting disorders. In guidelines produced by the United Kingdom Haemophilia Doctors Organisations, comparisons between the two types of product revolve around their relative safety, bearing in mind that no medicinal product can ever be completely free from risk. An advantage of recombinant products, where they are entirely free of human albumin, is that they eliminate the risk from blood borne viruses and the theoretical risk from vCJD. However, plasma derived clotting factors are tightly regulated by European and United States authorities to minimise the risk of viral transmission. This is achieved by the screening of donor blood and the anti-viral measures taken during manufacture. By ceasing to use UK plasma in the manufacture of blood products, the Government have already taken steps to reduce the unknown risks from vCJD.
The Government will make a full statement once we have completed our consideration of the Haemophilia Society's call to extend the provision of recombinant clotting factors to all haemophilia patients in England.