Unique Studies of Human Tissue Research

In 1951 the first human cell samples were taken from a cancer patient at Johns Hopkins University. These cells paved the way to developing the polio vaccine and the study of many other diseases.

Traditional testing for many years has been focused on animal-based samples. The trend is becoming very well known that these tests are inadequate and inaccurate far too often. There's no better way to gain information on human tissue research and a better understanding of human disease and general health than doing studies of human tissues, cells, and organs. For these to be effective, these studies must be regulated within certain guidelines.

Developing tissue banks for a wide variety of continued research should focus on being able to comply or exceed the standards of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the International Society of Biological and Environmental Repositories (ISBER).

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) was established in 1999 with a purpose to do an in-depth study of cancer, prevention, develop cancer registries and epidemiology, along with a scholarly exchange for continued study.

The International Society of Biological and Environmental Repositories (ISBER) is an international society of individuals and organizations whose goal is to set the highest standards for human tissue samples and bio specimen banks.

A good biomaterial resource center should be able to make it easy for research groups to be able to get the highest quality human tissue and organ specimens available preserved and prepared specifically to their protocols and shipped in a timely manner.

It was through researching thousands of breast tumors that researchers found about 25 percent of them carried an extra HER2 gene. This type of breast cancer is different than the others. From this research, they were able to develop a specific drug that actually slows the growth of the tumor and gives more positive results. To learn about cancer it is important to study actual cancer cells and tumors.

Taking tissue samples which are donated from actual patients offers the best resource available. Genetic mutations and abnormal cells can guide researchers to gain worthwhile new information on how cancer develops. It is only recently that these samples have been successfully taken and processed to preserve their quality in tissue banks until they reached their destination to be studied.

Today's researchers have the ability to study stem cells, tissues around tumors, and sort and define cell types. They can now study the reasons behind breast cancer and gynecological cancers.

In the same way, information on human tissue research can lead to answers to other diseases such as Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, lupus, other forms of cancer, and many other diseases. Other types of information on human tissue research can allows cells and tissues to be a part of the actual treatment. From this, bones, organs, and blood vessels can be repaired or grown. Through engineering human tissues other conditions can be treated like heart disease, immune disorders, spinal cord injuries, blood disorders, hearing loss, and eye disorders.