UAB has extensive experience in collecting, processing, storing, and supplying a wide range of human tissues to support research in cancer. Neoplastic and control tissues are supplied as fresh, frozen, and paraffin-processed specimens and tissue sections and other histology services are provided as requested by the users of the facility. The number of investigators requesting tissue sections in lieu of other forms of tissue continues to grow. We have expanded our service during the current funding period by offering microdissected specimens and the construction of tissue arrays. Currently tissues are collected and supplied to investigators when requested and we do not maintain an active tumor bank. Tissues obtained at the UAB-associated hospitals are transferred on ice by the Tissue Procurement personnel to surgical pathology where excess tissues not required for diagnosis are obtained. Surgical pathologists associated with the UAB Tissue Procurement Shared Facility evaluate aliquots of all tissues supplied for research for quality and diagnostic accuracy. Based on our experience in the previous funding period, we anticipate that the Facility will continue to play a very active role in promoting the goals of the Comprehensive Cancer Center most especially in enabling the effective use of emerging methodologies in basic and translational research, coordinating human tissue utilization in clinical trials, and ensuring compliance in the changing regulatory environment. The ability of the facility to meet these demands is assured by recent renovations and the ongoing participation of the staff in educational programs and active research in the area of tissue processing and banking. UAB has participated in the development of a comprehensive database and bar coding system that supports tissue resources by incorporating information on the tissue donor, tissue diagnosis and quality control, tissue processing and storage, investigator tissue requirements and usage of the tissues by researchers. Between March 2003 and February 2004, the facility provided 83 UAB investigators with 3437 fresh or frozen human tissue samples, 1174 paraffin blocks, and 6779 slides. Since 1978, our facility has provided approximately 72,779 tissue specimens, blocks, and slides to over 300 investigators at UAB. These tissues have been used in a total of 893 publications.
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