Toward a roadmap in global biobanking for health.
Biobanks can have a pivotal role in elucidating disease etiology, translation, and advancing public health. However, meeting these challenges hinges on a critical shift in the way science is conducted and requires biobank harmonization. There is growing recognition that a common strategy is imperative to develop biobanking globally and effectively. To help guide this strategy, we articulate key principles, goals, and priorities underpinning a roadmap for global biobanking to accelerate health science, patient care, and public health. The need to manage and share very large amounts of data has driven innovations on many fronts. Although technological solutions are allowing biobanks to reach new levels of integration, increasingly powerful data-collection tools, analytical techniques, and the results they generate raise new ethical and legal issues and challenges, necessitating a reconsideration of previous policies, practices, and ethical norms. These manifold advances and the investments that support them are also fueling opportunities for biobanks to ultimately become integral parts of health-care systems in many countries. International harmonization to increase interoperability and sustainability are two strategic priorities for biobanking. Tackling these issues requires an environment favorably inclined toward scientific funding and equipped to address socio-ethical challenges. Cooperation and collaboration must extend beyond systems to enable the exchange of data and samples to strategic alliances between many organizations, including governmental bodies, funding agencies, public and private science enterprises, and other stakeholders, including patients. A common vision is required and we articulate the essential basis of such a vision herein.
Department of Genes and Environment, Division of Epidemiology, The Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway. Jennifer.harris@fhi.no
Jennifer R
JR
Harris
Paul
P
Burton
Bartha Maria
BM
Knoppers
Klaus
K
Lindpaintner
Marianna
M
Bledsoe
Anthony J
AJ
Brookes
Isabelle
I
Budin-Ljøsne
Rex
R
Chisholm
David
D
Cox
Mylène
M
Deschênes
Isabel
I
Fortier
Pierre
P
Hainaut
Robert
R
Hewitt
Jane
J
Kaye
Jan-Eric
JE
Litton
Andres
A
Metspalu
Bill
B
Ollier
Lyle J
LJ
Palmer
Aarno
A
Palotie
Markus
M
Pasterk
Markus
M
Perola
Peter H J
PH
Riegman
Gert-Jan
GJ
van Ommen
Martin
M
Yuille
Kurt
K
Zatloukal
D018070:Biological Specimen Banks / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000639:trends; D003625:Data Collection; D016208:Databases, Factual