Background: The Leeds NIHR Biomarker Research Tissue Bank (RTB) is part of a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Programme Grants for Applied Research award, focused on biomarker evaluation in selected disease areas. The RTB was established for the multicentre collection and storage of samples from patients with liver diseases recruited within a randomised controlled trial (ELUCIDATE) of a biomarker panel, renal cancer patients and patients undergoing kidney transplant. The Leeds NIHR Biomarker RTB is jointly managed along with the Multidisciplinary RTB by the Joint RTB Management Committee. The Leeds NIHR Research Tissue Bank (RTB) was given favourable ethical opinion by the Leeds (East) Research Ethics Committee on 15th June 2010 (Current REC ref: 15/YH/0099).

Sample collections: Over the duration of the programme, 2,116 participants were recruited in total with 5,976 samples. Sample collection has taken place in multiple centres in the UK. These comprise:

• 847 patients with liver disease each with a single serum samples
• 514 patients on the kidney transplant waiting list including 312 subsequently transplanted, with 3,806 samples, each sample including multiple aliquots of serum, plasma and urine
• 706 patients with suspected renal cancer (200 longitudinal and 506 cross-sectional) with 1,132 samples, including multiple aliquots of serum, plasma, buffy coat and urine and an FFPE tissue block (frozen available in Leeds patients only)
• 149 healthy volunteers with 191 samples, each sample including multiple aliquots of serum, plasma and urine. All samples were collected according to SOPs and have been shipped from the participating sites and stored centrally in Leeds Biobanking and Sample Processing Facility. Associated clinical data has been collected using standard study-specific case report forms (CRFs), including long-term follow-up in many cases. Initially access to samples is prioritised for the needs of the Programme and investigators involved but additional collaborative access will then be possible. To find out further information please e-mail our Research Tissue Bank and Sample Processing Facility Manager, Pirkko-Liisa Muhonen at rtb@leeds.ac.uk.