Biobanks
Biobanks are collections of patient samples. They are an important interface between science and society as well as between the various biomedical disciplines. The biobank program at the Comprehensive Cancer Center Freiburg – CCCF is therefore of great significance for Freiburg as a center for translational biomedical research.
The continuous development of biobanking as an indispensable resource for cancer research is a declared goal of the CCCF. Biobanks store high-quality patient trials and the accompanying clinical data.
The Center for Biobanking (FREEZE Biobank, German language), supported by the Medical Center – University of Freiburg and the Faculty of Medicine, was established in an effort to take into account the growing challenges in this area. In addition to the infrastructure of the CCCF’s tumor tissue biobank, which is stored at the Institute of Clinical Pathology, FREEZE also implements a harmonized infrastructure for liquid samples.
In 2019, the tumor tissue bank and the FREEZE biobank became joint members of the German Biobank Node, the umbrella organization of university biobanks in Germany. The joint efforts of the well-established CCCF tumor tissue biobank and the newly introduced FREEZE biobank make it possible to cover all facets of biobanking, including solid tumors, hematological malignities, and organoids.
Diagnostic biomaterial from children and adolescents is stored in the HILDA Biobank (German language) at the Center for Pediatrics. The HILDA biobank is a partner of the FREEZE biobank and serves as the central biobank for 17 countries participating in the European Working Group on Childhood MDS (EWOGMDS).