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Puberty Suppressing Hormones: Clinical Trials

Asked by Dr Caroline JohnsonConservativeDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled Answered 9 March 2026UIN 115128

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether any children were recruited for any arm of the Pathways clinical trials prior to it being paused.

Answered by Dr Zubir Ahmed

As announced on 20 February 2026, the PATHWAYS clinical trial has been paused, following new queries raised by the medicines regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. No participants have been recruited to the trial and while it is paused recruitment will not start; therefore no children or young people will receive puberty suppression during this period.

As the intensive element of PATHWAYS HORIZON is designed to provide a matched control group for the trial, and as PATHWAYS CONNECT is designed to compare children and young people receiving puberty suppression with a group in the intensive element of PATHWAYS HORIZON, it is not possible for these aspects to progress without the TRIAL element. The other PATHWAYS study projects are not affected by this pause.

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