Jim Ryan and Eoin Gaffney met with Minister for Health and Children Mary Harney TD in October 2006, and explained Biobank Ireland’s initiative, estimated cost and implementation proposal, to start in two hospitals to prove the concept. When this is done, government would be expected to fund and sustain the complete network.
The implementation proposal to start in two hospitals at a cost of €1.2m. over 2 years was later strongly endorsed to Enterprise Ireland by an International Panel convened by CIRCA in July 2007. However, no action was forthcoming.
The cancer biobank network concept was strongly advocated in the report by the Minister’s Expert Group, which met in 2007-2008. The Group proposed that the 9 newly-designated cancer centres should have decentralised hospital biobanks with a common network database. However, Terms of Reference for The Expert Group did not specify timelines or a budget or request a proposed implementation mechanism.
The “tipping point” for the biobank network’s start-up was a Vodafone Ireland Foundation “World of Difference” award to Blanaid Mee to work with Biobank Ireland Trust for a year from August 2008. Together, Eoin Gaffney and Blanaid Mee set up the St James’s Hospital Cancer Biobank.
By linking the St James’s Hospital Biobank with the already established Beaumont Hospital / RCSI Biobank, adopting the same honest broker (neutral minders of the samples) policy, and using procedures kindly provided by Beaumont, the Irish biobank network effectively began in these two hospitals.