A Tissue Bank is an ethically approved collection of human tissue or other biological material which is stored for research purposes beyond the life of a specific project. You can find out more information about tissue banks in general here.

The Airwave Health Monitoring Study was given ethical approval as a Research Tissue Bank in August 2013. This was renewed for a further five years in February 2019.

Purpose of the Airwave Tissue Bank

While the primary aim of the Airwave Study is to investigate long term health effects from the use of the TETRA-based Airwave system, the rich resource of samples and data already obtained also provides a valuable opportunity for broader research into common diseases affecting police officers and staff. We have therefore become a resource for collaborative research aimed at devising new treatments and therapies for a range of medical conditions.

More information about our aims and objectives can be found in our Protocol, which is available below.

Existing Samples and Data

If you give consent for long term storage, your samples will be included in the Tissue Bank. This status applies retrospectively to all samples and data that have been collected.

Withdrawal

If for any reason you wish to opt out of the Airwave Tissue Bank, please write to us at [email protected]. Your healthcare or legal rights will not be affected in any way by your withdrawal. You will however not be able to participate in future follow-up health-screening if you withdraw.

You should not feel obliged to withdrawn from the Study simply because you have left the police force or no longer use the Airwave radio; your contribution to the Study continues to be of value whatever you are doing now.

If you have any queries or concerns about this, please write to us at [email protected].