Wales Cancer Bank awarded biobank of the year

The Wales Cancer Bank has been named as the 2020 UK Biobank of the Year by the UK Clinical Research Collaboration (UKCRC) Tissue Directory and Coordination Centre.

The Wales Cancer Bank, which is funded by Health and Care Research Wales, collects samples of tissue and blood from patients in Wales where cancer is a possible diagnosis.

The samples are stored to form a biorepository to which researchers can apply for biosamples and data.

Dr Alison Parry-Jones, Operations Director at the Wales Cancer Bank, described the award as a proud moment for “the wonderful team”. 

Thousands of the Wales Cancer Bank’s samples have been used in research conducted across the world in order to improve treatments for cancer patients.

Michael Bowdery, Head of Programmes at Health and Care Research Wales, said:

“We are proud to fund the Wales Cancer Bank and it’s great to see the team receive recognition from the UKCRC Tissue Directory and Coordination Centre. The award is well deserved.”