Biospecimen Resources for Population Scientists
- Potential Sources of Biospecimens for Investigators
- Policies and Best Practices for Biospecimen Research
- Contacts
Potential Sources of Biospecimens for Investigators
This list provides links to biospecimen resources that may be of interest to cancer epidemiologists, but is not exhaustive. Access to resources is dependent on procedures outlined for each individual study or resource. Availability may depend on suitability of proposed research, collaboration with study investigators, ethical considerations, approval from a steering committee, or availability of samples to perform study.
Compiled Lists and Search Tools for Sources of Biospecimens
- Australasian Biospecimen Network Tissue Specimen Locator
Locate tissue specimens within the Australia and New Zealand biobanking communities.- NCI Specimen Resource Locator
Search specimen banks and procurement services to find human tissue, serum, DNA/RNA, and other specimens.- NCI Tissue Expediter
Locate appropriate sources of human tissue specimens.- NCI Research Resources
Find resources on human specimens, animal specimens, tissue microarrays of human tumors, specimen banks and procurement services, and validation of biomarkers.- NCI Division of Cancer Treatment and Diagnosis - Human Tissue Specimen Resources
Find human tissue specimen resources from the Cancer Diagnosis Program.- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's (NHLBI) Biological Specimen and Data Repository Information Coordinating Center
(BioLINCC)
Learn about open collections, request data and/or biospecimens, and register study information.- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Central Repository
Locate phenotypic data and biological samples.- NIH Office of Rare Diseases Research Biospecimens/Biorepositories Website: Rare Disease-HUB
Search database containing collected, stored, and distributed biospecimens by biorepositories in the United States and worldwide.- National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Resource Catalogue
Access a catalog of biomedical resources which include databases, analytical tools, projects, initiatives and research technologies.Biospecimen Information for NCI-Supported Studies
- Agricultural Health Study (AHS)*
- AIDS and Cancer Specimen Resource (ACSR)
- Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention Study (ATBC)*
- The Breast Cancer Intergroup of North America
- Breast and Colon Cancer Family Registries (CFRs)
- Carotene and Retinol Efficacy Trial (CARET)
- Cooperative Breast Cancer Tissue Resource (CBCTR)
- Cooperative Human Tissue Network (CHTN)
- Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (HPFS)*
- The Nurses' Health Study (NHS)*
- Overview of NHS I and NHS II
- NHS Questionnaires
- Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian (PLCO) Cancer Screening Trial*
- Southern Community Cohort Study (SCCS)*
- Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) - Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial
- Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Residual Tissue Repository (RTR) Program
*This cohort is a member of NCI's Cohort Consortium.
Other Study-Specific Biospecimen Information
- Australasian Biospecimen Network (ABN)-Oncology (ABN)
- Chernobyl Tissue Bank
- Framingham Heart Study
- The Wales Cancer Bank
- Janus Serum Bank
- National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) Stored Biologic Specimens
Policies and Best Practices for Biospecimen Research
NIH Biospecimen Resources
- NIH Biospecimens Interest Group
This group disseminates information, best practices, and ethical/legal information regarding biospecimens.- National Cancer Institute (NCI) Office of Biorepositories and Biospecimen Research
Several biospecimen resources and references that may be useful in the design of research studies may be found on the NCI OBBR website.
- OBBR Best Practices for Biospecimen Resources
The NCI Best Practices outline the operational, technical, ethical, legal and policy best practices for NCI-supported biospecimen resources- Standard Operating Procedures
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for various biobanking practices- NCI Think Tank on Identifiability of Biospecimens and -Omic Data Workshop Summary
The purpose of this Think Tank, convened in June 2012, was to bring together a multidisciplinary group of experts to explore challenges surrounding the identifiability of genomic data and biospecimens. The resulting considerations regarding consent policy development, data access and security policies, proposed best practices, and opportunities for empirical research, are summarized in this report.- NCI Cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid
Other Resources
- International Society for Biological and Environmental Repositories (ISBER)
ISBER provides several resources for biobanking and biospecimens, including the ISBER best practices and a tool for evaluating adherence to these practices.- Public Population Project in Genomics (P3G)
This consortium encourages collaboration between researchers and biobankers by promoting harmonization of information, optimizing design, set-up and research activities of biobanks, and facilitating the transfer of knowledge within the field.
Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program (EGRP) contacts for questions about biospecimens related to cancer epidemiology research:
- Leah Mechanic, Ph.D., M.P.H., EGRP Biospecimens Coordinator and Program Director, Host Susceptibility Factors Branch (HSFB)
- Sheri Schully, Ph.D., Program Director, HSFB, and Project Officer, Breast and Colon Cancer Family Registries
- Daniela Seminara, Ph.D., M.P.H., Scientific Consortia Coordinator and Program Director
