Trust in Biobanking: Dealing with Ethical, Legal and Social Issues in an Emerging Field of Biotechnology

Biobanks are promising instruments of biomedical research and of transnational medicine in particular. Ethical, legal and social issues associated with biobanking, however, have recently led to a more critical view on this concept. All efforts addressing these concerns have been grounded on well-established standards of biomedical ethics such as informed consent procedures, protection of individual autonomy, benefit sharing etc. By additionally highlighting the widely neglected aspect of trust, this book aims at broadening the horizon of the ELSI-debate and thus filling a gap in current research on biobanking. The contributions of leading experts and junior researchers cover a wide field of disciplines relevant for biobanking including law, ethics, medicine, public health, social sciences, philosophy and theology.