We are pleased to announce that the UK ME/CFS Biobank has been successful in the first stage of its application to the Wellcome Trust to secure the future of the Biobank at London's Royal Free Hospital.
The ME/CFS Biobank team are now preparing the second stage of the bid.
Dr Charles Shepherd, chairman of the biobank steering group, said: “We've some way to go before we actually obtain Wellcome Trust funding but they've examined our bid, which mainly relates to the costings, and we feel this first stage approval is a bold step in the right direction.
“Securing long-term funding is a major priority for the biobank team, who are committed to building an internationally recognised bioresource and to increasing the capacity of the biobank to support a wide range of biomedical research into both the cause and diagnostic biomarkers for ME/CFS.
“We are also looking at other ways to ensure the resource is sustainable in the long term and will fully meet the expectations of people with ME/CFS and biomedical researchers.”
At present, the entire running costs of the biobank are supported by The MEA Ramsay Research Fund.
To read more more about the work and aims of the biobank, and what it is hoping to achieve in the immediate future, please click on the following link:
For more about the bid to the Wellcome Trust, click on this link:
The UK ME/CFS Biobank website: