Access, Sharing and Destruction

Transfer of human biological material between different parties requires:

• Approval from the Regional Committees for Medical and Health Research Ethics (REK)
• Consent from the participants
• Agreement between the parties

Collaboration projects shall be approved by REK in advance of transfer. The consent must include information about collaboration, and must be explicit about export of material abroad and outside the EU. An application for approval must be submitted for amendments, this also applies if new co-investigators are included during the project.

A procedure has been drawn up at Oslo University Hospital (OUS) for accessing and handing out human biological material for research.

External transfer of human biological material for research purposes shall be contractual.

A specific biobank is given an end date in the approval, after which the material must be destroyed. In the event of new, changed or expanded use, a new application to REK must be submitted in due time before of the end of the project.