How do I participate?

If you agree to take part there are four steps in the collection of tissue samples for the Tissue Bank.

Step 1. Frozen breast cancer and normal tissue

Normally, when breast cancer surgery is performed, the tissue removed is examined by a Pathologist who prepares a report that is used to plan future treatment. Only a proportion of the tissue removed  is required for this process. The remainder is either stored in wax blocks in the Pathology Department or discarded.

Step 2. Permission to use other stored tissue

If you agree to be a donor, we will take a small sample of breast cancer tissue and some of the normal surrounding tissue that is removed in your operation and is not required by the Pathologist.  We will store this frozen in the Tissue Bank. We would also like your permission to have access to some of the tissue which is stored in wax blocks.

Step 3. A blood sample

We would like to collect a small amount of blood (10-20mls or approximately 2 – 4 teaspoons) to match with the tissue. If possible this will be collected at the same time as other routine blood tests.

Step 4. Information about your health relevant to breast cancer

We would also like to ask you some questions and gather information from your health records relevant to your breast cancer that may be useful in research. This information may be obtained from your pathology reports, medical records or the NSW Cancer Registry and will include your treatment and progress over time.