Patient FAQs

Biological samples, or biospecimens are biological materials from your body (such as tissue, blood, and urine). When patients undergo procedures such as a blood draw or surgery in which a specimen is removed for diagnosis or treatment, it is often possible for a small amount of the specimen to be stored and later used for research.

Biorepositories or biobanks are collections of biospecimens and associated data. Specimens are stored for future research. Biobanks are critical to modern scientific research that drives the development of new treatments. 

If you consent to donate, left over tissue samples or blood which are not needed for your diagnosis or treatment will be preserved and made available for medical research. Information about you will be kept private by putting a code number on your samples. Researchers may receive information about your condition or treatment but they will not receive any information about who you are.  Before receiving samples from the biorepository, researchers must have approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB), which is responsible for protection of patients and other volunteers involved in research.  They make sure the research is ethical and has a sound scientific basis.  The amount and type of information researchers are allowed to have is decided by the IRB. The Biobank only distributes the minimum allowable information about you and your specimen necessary to perform the research, as determined by the IRB. 

Samples come from people of all backgrounds. Researchers use samples donated from many patients like you, to look for ways to prevent, diagnose, or treat health problems like diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Donating is a way that some patients cope with their disease. Many people find comfort knowing that by donating samples, they will help researchers make discoveries that can advance medicine and improve the treatment of others in their community. 

Most patients choose to donate samples that are already being collected during a routine medical procedure, such as surgery.  In many cases, tissue or blood is left over after all of the necessary testing is performed for your medical treatment.  These specimens are usually discarded after testing is complete.  Your doctor will ask if you would like to donate any of your left-over samples to the Biobank for future research.  You will be asked to sign a consent, which is usually given to you at the same time as your consent for your medical procedure. 

If you choose, you may also donate an additional blood sample in addition to the left-over specimens.  If this is done, we will try to obtain this at the same time you receive a blood draw for other reasons.

While there is no direct benefit to you, donating tissue or blood samples can help advance science and may help others with your condition in the future.  Your samples and others like them are instrumental in the fight against cancer and other diseases. 

No. Your medical treatment will not be affected by your decision.  You will receive the same great care whether or not you decide to donate your residual samples to the Biobank. 

There are no costs to you or your insurance company if you donate samples.

You will not receive any compensation for your participation and donation.

You will receive results from your diagnostic medical tests (such as blood tests or biopsy). But you will not receive the results from research done on your samples. You will not be notified when your samples are distributed to researchers.

A committee of experts reviews each sample request. The committee considers the scientific rationale and other criteria to decide if the request is approved. All researchers receiving samples must have an approved ethical research protocol which has been reviewed by the IRB.

Samples and data can be kept and used for research indefinitely, unless the donor requests their samples be withdrawn from the Biobank. 

Of course. You can elect to withdraw your samples from the biorepository at any time. However, this will not affect samples which have been already used or distributed. Please call or email the Biobank with questions about this. 

To do the best scientific research with your samples, researchers may need to have some information about you and your health, such as your gender, race, age, family or medical history, and any treatments you may have received. The Biobank only provides the minimum necessary information which has been approved by the IRB for the designated research.

Your privacy is very important to us. To protect your privacy, your samples will be coded with a random number instead of your name. Your address, phone number, Social Security number, date of birth, and anything else that could identify you will be removed before the records are sent to the researcher. Federal law requires the protection of your private medical information. Only the minimum associated data allowed by the IRB for the research will be provided to researchers.

There are very few risks to donation. Because the specimens are collected from tissue left over from a diagnostic procedure, there are no additional physical risks. The main risk is the accidental release of your health information. Security measures are in place to prevent this from happening. 

Thank you for considering donation to the UTMB Biobank. If you have more questions about donating your samples, please call the Biobank at 409-772-2853 or email us at biobank@utmb.edu

Biobank trifold patient brochure (PDF)

Biobank trifold patient brochure – Spanish (PDF)

Biobank FAQ brochure (PDF)

Biobank FAQ brochure – Spanish (PDF)