Translation of "Monroe group diagnostic test " (English → French) :

To reduce the administrative workload and enhance the competitiveness of research and industry in the Union, it should be possible to authorise multiple generic projects when carried out using established methods for testing, diagnostic or production purposes under one group authorisation, albeit without exempting any of these procedures from the project evaluation.

(Return tabled) Question No. 8 Ms. Judy Wasylycia-Leis: With respect to the government’s actions to detect, prevent and treat Lyme disease in Canada: (a) by what standard is the accuracy of Lyme disease testing conducted at the National Microbiological Laboratories evaluated; (b) when was the most recent independent evaluation of the proficiency of this testing conducted, by whom and what were the results; (c) what are the current criteria for determining whether a geographical area is deemed to be endemic for Lyme-infected ticks; (d) what is the projected schedule of field study with regard to such endemic areas; (e) with respect to ...[+++] the recommendations of the National Conference on Lyme Disease hosted by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) in March 2006, (i) have the committees to develop new guidelines on surveillance, clinical and laboratory criteria been formed and, if so, when have they met, (ii) what stakeholder groups have participated in the development of new guidelines, what form has that participation taken, and when did it occur; (f) what is the government's strategy to protect canadians from the increase in incidents of Lyme disease anticipated by PHAC; (g) what is PHAC's strategy to increase (i) physicians' and other health professionals' awareness of the symptoms of Lyme disease, (ii) the canadian public's awareness of the symptoms of Lyme disease; (h) what measures has the PHAC taken in conjunction with provincial health authorities to increase professional and public awareness; (i) what are PHAC's measurable targets for the future increase of awareness and diagnostic accuracy of Lyme disease; (j) does Health Canada recommend the screening of blood for Lyme disease or co-infections such as babesiosis, as done in the United States and, if not, why not; and (k) what research projects into lyme borelia and tick-borne co-infections, their epidemiology, their possible role in the occurence of other diseases, and their treatment are current ...

The Group suggests that a European network for diagnostic testing of rare genetic diseases be created and financially supported as a matter of urgency.

It is unreasonable to impose additional unnecessary regulatory burdens on Ontario's diagnostic testing laboratories for risk group 2 pathogens, unless there is a well- identified need with clear benefits to be gained.

The paper also makes a useful summary of the state of knowledge in the key areas. The following is a list of areas considered by the group as worthy of research : - research aimed at establishing whether or not BSE has been transmitted to man; - working on the hypothesis that BSE may be transmissible to man, a number of suggestions are put forward aimed at establishing a risk assessment such as work on determining whether multiple dosing is cumulative and an estimation of the utilisation of offal in different human food products prior to the ban and the consumption of those products by individual age groups and socio-economic criteria; ...[+++] - is there infectivity in BSE-infected cattle derived products other than SBO (Specified Bovine Offal) ?; - further research to establish the precise reason or route for maternal transmission of BSE in some cases; - establish if it is possible that BSE originated as a (rare) spontaneous event in cattle and that the BSE agent is different from the scrapie agent; - can BSE be transmitted orally to pigs ?; - research into the development of diagnostic techniques for BSE and CJD; - establish the efficiency of BSE inactivation procedures used in the food and pharmaceutical industry; - certain areas are suggested for research into developing therapeutic treatment for victims of the CJD disease and also into developing a test which would indicate those people susceptible to the disease; - predictive research is also proposed as it has been shown that CJD occurs rarely in individuals with certain genes.