title: Informed consent and biobanks: a population-based study of attitudes towards tissue donation for genetic research.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The procurement and usage of tissue samples has begun receiving increasing legal and ethical attention. The authors' aim was to develop an empirically based understanding of public attitudes to the use of tissue for research.
  
  
  METHODS
  A questionnaire was distributed to a randomized sample (n=1,000) of the population in the age group 18-85 in Västerbotten County, Sweden.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The response rate was approximately 60%. There was a general acceptance of genetic research based on biobank material (71%) but, though it is often a prerequisite for tissue-based research, a majority (62%) would not allow researchers to examine their healthcare records without specific consent. A majority (66.8%) accepted surrogate decisions by research ethical committees; 48% of the respondents estimated that they would feel respected if they were notified each time a sample was used. When compared and ranked with other issues, informed consent was a principal concern to a minority (4%) only. Should research efforts generate information on future health risks, a majority (55%) would want to be told only if treatment was available.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Though genetic research in bioethical debate is often viewed as a potential threat to the integrity of the donor, the confidentiality of medical records still seems to concern donors more. Research ethical committees have support in the majority of the population for some surrogate decisions. The current emphasis on the question of informed consent in policy making for biobank-based research does not seem to be reflected unambiguously in the concerns of the general public.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Sweden. klaus.hoeyer@medicin.umu.se
authors.forename: Klaus
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hoeyer
authors.forename: Bert-Ove
authors.initials: BO
authors.lastname: Olofsson
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mjörndal
authors.forename: Niels
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Lynöe
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D018070:Biological Specimen Banks; D003219:Confidentiality; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D036281:Genetic Research; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008499:Medical Records; D008875:Middle Aged; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden; D020858:Tissue and Organ Harvesting / Q000523:psychology*