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BMC Cancer

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Open Access 01-12-2024 | Research

Attitudes of oncology patients’ towards biospecimen donation for biobank research

Authors: Jan Domaradzki, Justyna Czekajewska, Dariusz Walkowiak

Published in: BMC Cancer | Issue 1/2024

Abstract

Background

Since the biological material that remains after diagnostic and therapeutic procedures plays crucial role in biobank research, this study aims to explore cancer patients’ views on the donation of biospecimens for research purposes.

Methods

548 oncology patients from two hospitals with oncology treatment units in Poznan, Poland, completed an anonymous, self-administered pen-and-paper questionnaire.

Results

Although only 43.4% of patients had heard of biobanks, 93.1% declared themselves willing to donate. 71.1% of patients believed that doctors should ask patients to donate, and 60.9% that this should be done before the medical procedure. While 65% of patients were willing to donate any type of tissue that remained after a medical procedure, blood, saliva and hair were indicated most frequently. 40.5% of patients would donate their entire body after death and 21% would refuse. Patients’ support for biobanks was mainly driven by the desire to support science, help advance cancer research and altruism. Some respondents expected health information or medical treatment. The most common barriers for donation were physical distance, repeated examinations, concerns over the privacy and confidentiality of data and the commercial or unethical use of samples. Patients’ attitudes toward biobank donation seemed to be associated with age, education level, declared religiousness, a family history of genetically determined diseases and whether they were a blood donor.

Conclusions

Although cancer patients’ lack of biobank awareness had no effect on their affirmative attitudes towards biobank research, there is a need to further increase patients’ support and overcome possible barriers that might hinder their willingness to donate.

Although some authors suggest that since a person who participates in biobank research does not donate the biological sample but shares it, and is always the owner of one’s biological material and can withdraw consent at any given time, the word “sharing” is more appropriate than “donation”, since both official documents published by the European Union, ISBER or BBMRI and the most literature on biobanks, use the word “donation” we also use it through this paper. Similarly, even though it is sometimes argued that since in the context of biobanking there is not strict donation to other person and for that reason biobank donors should be more appropriately termed “source persons”, following the literature which uses more common term “donor” or “participant” to refer to a person providing one’s biosamples or medical information, to biobanks, through our paper we will also use this term. We are grateful to the anonymous reviewer for bringing our attention to this.

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Title: Attitudes of oncology patients’ towards biospecimen donation for biobank research
Authors: Jan Domaradzki
Justyna Czekajewska
Dariusz Walkowiak
Publication date: 01-12-2024
Publisher: BioMed Central
Published in: BMC Cancer / Issue 1/2024
Electronic ISSN: 1471-2407
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-024-12145-5

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