UK biobank opens to researchers

[Terpe]

The UK Biobank, the most comprehensive health study in the UK, is opening its doors to researchers.

It has collated about 20TB (terabytes) of securely stored data, the equivalent of 30,000 CDs-worth, on 500,000 people.

The aim of the biobank is to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of conditions such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

England's chief medical officer, Dame Sally Davies, said the UK Biobank would be a "globally unique resource".

The biobank began recruiting participants three years ago, and was open to people aged 40 to 69.

Each answered questions on their health, lifestyle, diet, memory, work and family history.

They also had a range of measurements taken, including blood pressure, pulse rate, height, weight, body fat and lung function, and provided blood, saliva and urine samples.

'Very exciting day'

About 26,000 people with diabetes, 50,000 with joint disorders, 41,000 teetotallers and 11,000 heart attack patients are taking part.

Participants' health will be followed over many years.

It is about to undertake repeat measures of 20,000 participants from the Manchester area, and later this year it will ask participants to wear an activity monitor for one week.

It has also been overseeing a diet questionnaire, which has been filled in by 400,000 participants.

The hope is that the UK Biobank will allow scientists to investigate why some people develop particular diseases in middle age while others do not, with the hope of developing new treatments and prevention strategies.

It will be open to researchers from the UK and abroad, who will be able to use the - anonymised - data in their work.

Professor Sir Rory Collins, principal investigator at the biobank, said: "This is without doubt a very exciting day for medical research, not just in the UK but around the world.

"We are grateful to participants for their trust and support so far. But they have not joined the project to see it remain idle; we all want to see the resource used extensively to bring about benefits to health and wellbeing."

Prof Dame Sally Davies, chief medical officer and chief scientific adviser at the Department of Health, said: "UK Biobank is a globally unique resource which places the UK at the forefront of the quest to understand why some people develop life-threatening diseases or debilitating conditions.

"It has huge potential for future generations and will help us understand how our children and our children's children can live longer, healthier lives."

The biobank is funded by the Wellcome Trust, Medical Research Council, Department of Health, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and the British Heart Foundation.

Source:-
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-17553931

[lastlid]

Suffice to say this is an excellent idea. It is as a useful to look at empirical evidence and statistics as understanding why and will help us to know why.

[Doc Alan]

• If we could afford to apply what we already know – with no more research – worldwide health would be improved and millions of lives saved. That would be good news indeed :). It would be of more interest and welcomed by all members. Prevention, early diagnosis, and effective treatment are available – at a price - for common serious illnesses like heart disease, most cancers, and infections like malaria, TB, and HIV / AIDS.
• However, tissue and DNA samples linked to a personal medical database and test results should be able to uncover useful information. Drug companies and research workers may discover new drugs from looking at genetic variations in people with a particular disease. Disease patterns in certain groups will be more easily spotted.
• This Biobank is unique in its size, but there are others. Very many universities and hospitals round the world have data. Much published work is “ meta analysis “ of all other studies on a given illness.
• Anonymity is a double – edged sword. There’s no way of informing a participant if the data shows they’re at risk from a specific disease. Conversely, it should stop police or others trying to access information for solving crimes or in the interests of national security. Insurers would also like – but won’t get - information to know if their clients are at increased risk from illness.
• With such a massive project, quality control is not easy – reliability is vital for new drugs and health policies to be effective.
• This is a very expensive project. Information should be free for research workers, but drug companies and others who are looking for profit should have to pay.
• Ideally there will soon be obvious benefits, as more information becomes available about diseases and response to treatment. Some current treatments are crude – chemotherapy for cancer kills many normal cells, and major surgery has risks. The wish for the future is for “ personalised medicine “ with treatment tailored to individuals’ genetic blueprints - far safer and effective than at present. Let’s hope this Biobank is successful. Only time will tell – up to 30 years is planned – but it’s been greeted enthusiastically by the medical establishment.