2000th patient consented!!

Three years and three days after the first patient was consented to donate tissue and blood to the Wales Cancer Bank, the 2000 th patient was consented on 31 st January 2008 . During those three years the WCB has grown from 3 research nurses working in 3 hospitals to 7 nurses consenting in 7 hospitals. Initially the collection was limited to seven tumour types (breast, colorectal, prostate, ovarian, thyroid, renal and head and neck) but this has steadily grown to 17 different tumour types (see pie chart) thanks to the interest and commitment of clinical teams and pathologists and their departments around Wales.

The WCB has now started to fulfil its remit to facilitate cancer research by provided high quality biomaterials to the research community. All applications for samples are scrutinised by an international external review panel to ensure good scientific use of samples and, to date, 22 applications have been received from the UK and Europe . 13 projects have been supplied and the full range of biomaterials currently being made available by WCB has been requested.

WCB would like to thank their funders, The Welsh Assembly Government, Cancer Research Wales and Velindre NHS Trust for their continued support. The greatest thanks, however, are reserved for the patients in Wales who have been overwhelmingly supportive of the WCB and its aims and who continue to donate samples for the benefit of future generations. 99.2% of patients approached by a WCB nurse agree to consent. Without them there would be no bank, THANK YOU!!!