How to register as a tissue donor
Raising awareness of all those affected by MS
Requesting tissue for research on multiple sclerosis
Promoting the Tissue Bank in the research community
The Bank Statement
Articles
Links:
Banking on the future
A very special bank
Making a very special contribution
Department of Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
Department of Neuropathology
Multiple Sclerosis Society of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
E-mail: ukmstissuebank@imperial.ac.uk
(The Bank Statement is also available as a PDF document.)
ISSUE 2
Welcome to the second issue of the Tissue Bank’s newsletter. Some of you will have already registered as donors, while others will be in the process of deciding whether it is right for you; or may be, you are the relative or friend of someone who has donated tissue. We hope that our Bank Statement will keep all of you up to date with what is going on here at the Tissue Bank.
In this issue find out about...
How it all started
In 1998, the Multiple Sclerosis Society awarded a 5-year grant to Imperial College London at Charing Cross Hospital to enable the setting-up of a national Tissue Bank for research on multiple sclerosis (MS). The aim of this centralised facility is:
- to co-ordinate the collection of tissue donated for MS research from people that had MS and from people that did not have MS, and
- to distribute samples of the tissue to scientists conducting research into the causes and treatment of MS.
Reviewing our work
The progress that the Tissue Bank had made over the first 5-year grant period was assessed by an Independent Review Panel appointed by the MS Society. The Panel was chaired by Professor James Underwood (President, Royal College of Pathologists; Chairman, Working Committee on Organ Retention) and comprised of experts in neuropathology, neurology and MS research. The panel also included a relative (Mrs Sharon Rowsell) of a person who had donated tissue, a person living with MS (Ms Bryony Jones) and representatives from the MS Society.
“…one of the best in the UK and Europe.”
The diligence with which the members of the Panel examined the work of the Tissue Bank has meant that we have been able to draw on their report to further improve our work. We are delighted that upon the recommendation of the Review Panel, the Board of Trustees of the MS Society decided to fund the Tissue Bank for another five years (March 2003 to February 2008). The overall conclusion reached by the Independent Review Panel was that the UK Multiple Sclerosis Tissue Bank was “one of the best in the UK and Europe”.
Progress in the work of the Tissue Bank
We have continued to raise the profile of the Tissue Bank as a facility for those who want to donate tissue to research after their death. Over the last five years, Professor Richard Reynolds (Scientific Director) and Dr Abhi Vora (Manager) have given over 100 talks on the importance of the availability of tissue for research. As well as these face-to-face interactions, we have written articles for magazines including MS Matters and TeaMSpirit. We have also promoted our work amongst neurologists and nurses, so that they are also able to pass-on information about tissue donation. We have used these promotional exercises to get in touch with as many people as possible who want to find out about donating tissue to research on the cause and treatment of MS.
Accumulation of enquiries and registered donors
The graph below shows how the number of people requesting an Information Pack (blue line) and registering as donors (red line) has continued to rise over the last 6years. At the end of six years, we had supplied over 3,452 Information Packs and 2,186 individuals had registered on the Tissue Bank’s Donor Scheme. We will continue raising our profile because we need even more people to register.
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Division of Neuroscience and Mental Health
Imperial College London
Charing Cross Campus
Fulham Palace Road
London W6 8RF
Tel: 020 8846 7324
Fax: 020 8846 7500
E-mail: ukmstissuebank@imperial.ac.uk