Novo Nordisk received 7,500 glands from Irish hospitals

International pharmaceutical company, Novo Nordisk, has confirmed that it received 7,500 glands from Irish hospitals.

Earlier reports had put the figure at 2,500, but were revised upwards after the Danish company reviewed its own records.

This news will add to the growing pressure on the Dunne Inquiry into organ retention to make a public statement on revelations that thousands of pituitary glands were made available to pharmaceutical companies to produce growth hormones

The Parents for Justice Group, which has already expressed its unhappiness with the inquiry, and has demanded that a new one be established on a full statutory basis to establish the extent of the organ retention in a transparent manner.

The Irish Medical Council has also stressed the need for all the facts to be made available as soon as possible.

Minister for Health Micheál Martin is to set up an expert group to review the extent of organ donation, procurement and use.