The Chernobyl Tissue Bank—integrating international research on thyroid cancer

Abstract

The Chernobyl Tissue Bank (CTB) is a research resource for both ongoing and future studies of the health consequences of the Chernobyl accident. To date, the only cancer to have shown a verified increase is thyroid cancer. The research so far suggests that it is primarily those who were youngest at the time of the accident who show the greatest risk, and the increase is largely restricted to one particular type of cancer of the thyroid follicular cell, papillary carcinoma. The CTB seeks to maximise the amount of information obtained from small pieces of tumour by providing multiple aliquots of RNA and DNA extracted from well documented pathological specimens to a number of researchers world-wide and to conserve this valuable material for future generations of scientists. It exists to promote collaborative, rather than competitive, research on a limited biological resource. The project ensures (a) the best possible diagnostic service is provided to patients and that appropriate ethical consent is obtained for each biological sample; (b) that specimens of thyroid cancer operated on or after 1 October 1998 (the start date of the project) are properly described and sampled; and (c) that materials (frozen tissue, fixed tissue sections, extracted DNA/RNA and blood samples) are available for appropriate research studies. It also provides a diagnosis agreed by internationally recognized pathologists and an archive of material that can be used for current and future studies on radiation related thyroid cancer.