Written question asked by Jackie Doyle-Price (Conservative) on Wednesday, 22 November 2023, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 27 November 2023. It was answered by Andrew Stephenson (Conservative) on Tuesday, 28 November 2023 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

Stem Cells: Donors

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing self-sufficiency in UK stem cell donations.

Answer: The UK Stem Cell Strategic Forum, a Departmental advisory body, has recommended in its report A 10 Year Vision for Stem Cell Transplantation and Advanced Cellular Therapies that donor to patient unrelated donations in the United Kingdom should be increased to 45%. This will improve the sustainability and resilience of UK stem cell supply, maintain the UK’s expertise in stem cell provision and support adoption of advanced cellular therapies. The Department is investing £2.4 million between April 2022 and March 2025 to recruit stem cell donors to improve resilience and help address health inequalities.

Secondary information