Rao Abhi, Vaught Jim, Tulskie Bill, Olson Dorie, Odeh Hana, McLean Jeffrey, Moore Helen M
1 Biorepositories and Biospecimen Research Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland.
2 Editor-in-Chief, Biopreservation and Biobanking.
Biopreserv Biobank. 2019 Apr;17(2):129-138. doi: 10.1089/bio.2018.0069. Epub 2019 Jan 14.
Researchers and other key stakeholders in biobanking often do not have a thorough understanding of the true costs and challenges associated with initiating, running, and maintaining a biobank. The National Cancer Institute's Biorepositories and Biospecimen Research Branch (BBRB) commissioned the Biobanking Financial Sustainability survey to better understand the challenges that biobanks face in supporting ongoing operations. A series of interviews with biobanking managers and an international focus group session informed the content of the survey.
The design of the survey included five main sections, each containing questions related to primary topics as follows: general demographics, operations, funding sources, costs, and financial challenges. While the survey focused on financial issues and challenges, it also explored staffing and strategic planning as these issues relate to the sustainability of operations and financial support. U.S. and international biobanks were included in the survey.
Biobanks in general are dependent on public funding and most biobanks do not have formal plans for the long-term stewardship of their collections. Respondents are working at a critical level of personnel and are not in a position to further reduce staffing. Smaller biobanks in particular need assistance in defining reasonable cost recovery user fees for biospecimens and related services.
The survey results highlight several issues that are important for long-term biobank sustainability. It is critical to prepare for such issues as effective biobanking practices have increasingly been recognized as a key component for the advancement of precision medicine.
生物样本库领域的研究人员和其他关键利益相关者通常对启动、运营和维护生物样本库的实际成本及挑战缺乏全面了解。美国国立癌症研究所的生物样本库与生物样本研究分支（BBRB）委托开展了生物样本库财务可持续性调查，以更好地了解生物样本库在支持日常运营方面所面临的挑战。对生物样本库管理人员的一系列访谈以及一次国际焦点小组会议为该调查的内容提供了参考。
该调查的设计包括五个主要部分，每个部分都包含与以下主要主题相关的问题：一般人口统计学信息、运营、资金来源、成本以及财务挑战。虽然该调查聚焦于财务问题和挑战，但也探讨了人员配备和战略规划，因为这些问题与运营和财务支持的可持续性相关。美国和国际的生物样本库都被纳入了此次调查。
总体而言，生物样本库依赖公共资金，且大多数生物样本库没有针对其样本长期管理的正式计划。受访者目前的人员配置处于关键水平，无法进一步削减人员。特别是规模较小的生物样本库在确定生物样本及相关服务合理的成本回收用户费用方面需要帮助。
调查结果突出了几个对生物样本库长期可持续性至关重要的问题。鉴于有效的生物样本库实践日益被视为精准医学发展的关键组成部分，为这些问题做好准备至关重要。
