Auria Biobank

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Auria Biobank achieve ISO 20387:2020 accreditation

The team at Auria Biobank, part of Turku University Hospital’s Laboratory Division, have achieved ISO 20387:2020 accreditation. This makes Auria the fourth BBMRI-ERIC member biobank to demonstrate quality to this international standard.

How Auria Biobank and Silo AI use computer vision to find new information to fight cancer

Auria Biobank (Turku University Hospital and University of Turku) and Nordic AI service and solution provider Silo AI announce today their collaboration in investigating computer vision-powered solutions for novel cancer diagnostics in digital pathology. The research project focuses on analyzing digital pathology images of tissue samples from one of the most common skin cancers. Silo AI’s AI Scientists leverage computer vision in order to analyze the vast dataset of these digital pathology images.

Silo.ai blog

BIOBANK RESEARCH

Auria Biobank serves both academic research and R&D of medical companies.

You can view the researches either annually or by disease group.

AURIA BIOBANK SERVICES

Auria Biobank offers high-quality human biological samples for biomedical research.

What is Auria Biobank?

Auria Biobank is Finland's oldest hospital biobank. Over a million samples are stored in the biobank and used for medical research. When you give your consent to the biobank, samples taken from you in connection with your treatment, as well as the related information, are stored in the biobank.The biobank assigns biological samples for medical research. The research results are used to determine the causes of diseases and to develop better medicines and forms of treatment.

Auria Biobank is the first Finnish accredited biobank (B001) by FINAS Finnish Accreditation Service, accreditation requirements SFS-EN ISO 20387:2020. Information on the activities within the scope of accreditation are available on the website www.finas.fi .

Auria Biobank is situated in Turku, in connection with Turku University Hospital (Tyks) and is part of Tyks Laboratories result group. The biobank was established by the University of Turku and the hospital districts of Southwest Finland, Satakunta and Vaasa. It was established in 2012, and in spring 2014 received its operating license from Valvira, the National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health. At the start of 2020, duties related to the supervision of biobanks transferred from Valvira to Fimea, the Finnish Medicines Agency.

Biobank operations are guided by the Finnish Biobank Act, which entered into force in autumn 2013. The Biobank Act secures the rights of the donor and improves researchers’ prerequisites for using the sample collections. In accordance with the Biobank Act, samples and personal data can, with the donor’s consent, be collected and saved in biobanks for future research purposes.

Click on the image to open a biobank video on Youtube.com.

Towards a healthier future

Auria Biobank’s mission is to promote citizens’ health.

The biobank assigns biological samples for medical research. The research results are used to determine the causes of diseases and to develop better medicines and forms of treatment.

Auria Biobank is a part of hospital operations and operates in connection with Tyks, Satasairaala and Vaasa central hospital.

You can help by giving your biobank consent

The biobank’s operations are based on biological samples and the linked clinical data. Every sample can provide valuable research information to support treatment. Biobank samples are collected from people who have given their consent to the biobank.

The interactive map shows the percentage of biobank consent in relation to the municipality’s population.

You can give your consent at www.auria.fi/consent or by filling in a consent form during your next appointment. Consent only needs to be given once. Underage persons may also give their biobank consent together with their parent/guardian.

You are also entitled to refuse giving biobank consent without the refusal affecting your treatment. You can also withdraw your consent at any time

Clicking on this map image opens an interactive consent map.

Giving biological samples to the biobank is simple and safe

Samples for the biobank are collected for diagnostic purposes and in connection with treatment from people who have given their consent to the biobank. Giving a sample does not require any additional measures, visits or costs from you.

You can, however, donate a biobank blood sample even if you have no other reason for having a blood sample taken. By making a special appointment, you can visit the TUAS Lab maintained by Turku University of Applied Sciences and give a biobank sample. The TUAS Lab is located in Turku in the building Medisiina D, and the sampling is performed by bioanalytics students who are familiar with the task. The biobank consent form must always be signed at the time of sampling at the TUAS Lab, even if you have signed one before. The sampling is free of charge.

Auria Biobank processes the donor’s information confidentially. The biobank assigns samples for research primarily in coded format.

Auria Biobank’s operations are regulated by the Finnish Biobank Act, and biobank operations are supervised by the authorities. The donor of a sample has the right to ask the biobank for information concerning their samples.