Shows
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast35 - ELSI Dialogues: Trustworthy by Design: Ethics, Practice and Impact of AI in Cancer Research and CareThe potential of artificial intelligence (AI) to improve cancer diagnostics, treatment plans and patient outcomes is immense, particularly when it comes to medical imaging. But what does it mean for AI to be truly trustworthy in practice? What do experts and patients need to develop trust in such potentially revolutionary new tools and how can we incorporate human needs early-on to ensure AI is trustworthy by design?In the latest ELSI Dialogues session in October 2025, two invited experts, Macej Bobowicz, MD, PhD (Medical University of Gdansk) and Prof. Karim Lekadir (University of Barcelona), shared their thoughts and...
2025-12-1751 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast34 - Ángel Álvarez-Prado profile: “I think it was game changing in my career. It was just a once in a lifetime experience.”Meet Dr. Ángel Álvarez-Prado, principal investigator at the Translational Cancer Immunogenomics Lab at the Luxembourg Institute of Health. His journey took him from a curious child and self-described “computer nerd” to the head of his own laboratory, dedicated to advancing cancer treatment. Ángel first crossed paths with BBMRI-ERIC in 2023 while working as a postdoctoral fellow at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research at the University of Lausanne. He was selected to participate in the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, an annual event where young scientists have the rare opportunity to engage with Nobel Laureates and explore breakthroughs in their fields.BBMRI...
2025-09-1821 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast33 - ELSI Dialogues: Empowering Voices - Enhancing Patient Engagement in Oncology Research“No one has to reinvent the wheel in their work, but we need more visibility for the often invisible work, working with patients and the benefits this has for research.” (Melanie Goisauf)In episode 33 of the BBMRI-ERIC podcast we listen in on a recent BBMRI-ERIC ELSI Dialogues session recorded in June 2025, a vivid experts’ discussion covered concepts and practical means to effectively utilise the potential of patients’ unique perspectives. Moderator Melanie Goisauf, ELSI Senior Scientist at BBMRI-ERIC, discussed ways to successful patient engagement with three invited experts: Margareta Haag (Chair of the Swedish...
2025-07-0944 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast32 - Congress Radio: Europe Biobank Week 2025 - Day Four - Ethics Café, a winning pitch and closing thoughtsVisit day four of the Europe Biobank Week Congress in this mini-series covering the event - part of the BBMRI-ERIC Podcast. During these episodes, you’ll experience the congress as it happens in Bologna, Italy from 13-16 May 2025. You’ll get a flavour of the event from interviews with organisers, speakers and delegates. If you missed day three, find it at Europe-biobank-week-dot-eu.EBW is a yearly congress jointly organised between BBMRI-ERIC and ESBB. It unites over 800 biobankers, researchers, industry specialists and decision makers for keynotes, workshops, industry talks and parallel sessions over four days.Thi...
2025-05-1728 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast31 - Congress Radio: Europe Biobank Week 2025 - Day Three - Participants, Posters and EP PerMedVisit day three of the Europe Biobank Week Congress in this mini-series covering the event - part of the BBMRI-ERIC Podcast. Europe Biobank Week Congress is happening in Bologna, Italy from 13-16 May 2025. You’ll hear a flavour of the event through interviews with organisers, speakers and delegates. If you missed day one, find it at the Europe Biobank Week website.EBW is the most important event of the year for the global biobanking community. A yearly congress, jointly organised between BBMRI-ERIC and ESBB, it unites over 800 biobankers, researchers, industry specialists and decision makers from acro...
2025-05-1621 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast30 - Congress Radio: Europe Biobank Week 2025 - Day Two - Scientific Programme LaunchVisit day two of the Europe Biobank Week Congress in this mini-series covering the event - part of the BBMRI-ERIC Podcast. Europe Biobank Week Congress is happening in Bologna, Italy from 13-16 May 2025. You’ll hear a flavour of the event through interviews with organisers, speakers and delegates. If you missed day one, find it at the Europe Biobank Week website.EBW is the most important event of the year for the global biobanking community. A yearly congress, jointly organised between BBMRI-ERIC and ESBB, it unites over 800 biobankers, researchers, industry specialists and decision makers from acro...
2025-05-1513 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast29 - Congress Radio: Europe Biobank Week 2025 - Day One - WorkshopsVisit day one of the Europe Biobank Week Congress in this mini-series covering the event - part of the BBMRI-ERIC Podcast. Europe Biobank Week Congress is happening in Bologna, Italy from 13-16 May 2025. You’ll hear a flavour of the event through interviews with organisers, speakers and delegates. EBW is the most important event of the year for the global biobanking community. A yearly congress, jointly organised between BBMRI-ERIC and ESBB, it unites over 700 biobankers, researchers, industry specialists and decision makers from across the life sciences to discuss the latest innovative research and industry changes. It f...
2025-05-1414 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast28 - ELSI Dialogues: Navigating the Future: Legal and IT Challenges, Risks, and Opportunities of AI in Biobanking“The technology is there. What is not there immediately, is how to use the technology properly.”(Prof. Marco Montali)In episode 28 of the BBMRI-ERIC podcast, Ilaria Colussi, Data Protection Officer at BBMRI-ERIC, and two guest experts discuss legal and technical aspects of using AI tools for biobanking. How can AI help modern biobanking? How can biobanks with their vast data and sample collections support the development of AI tools for e.g., medical diagnostics? And what are the legal frameworks that regulate the use and development of this rather young technology with its...
2025-05-0849 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast27 - ELSI Dialogues: The Nagoya Protocol applied to Biobanks“It’s not a secret to anybody that the biodiversity is decreasing on all continents, and this implies a lot of important issues for the day-to-day life of human beings. For a sustainable use of the biodiversity and benefit sharing, the Nagoya protocol was adopted.”(Melania Muñoz Garcia)Sharing is caring. This also holds true for biological samples and data as resources for research. Episode 27 of the BBMRI-ERIC podcast explores how the Nagoya Protocol - an international agreement regulating collection, storage and sharing of non-human genetic resources - helps biobankers and researc...
2025-03-1343 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast26 - ELSI Dialogues: Artificial Intelligence in South-Eastern Asia - The Indonesian National Artificial Intelligence Strategy on Ethics and Policy“AI systems need to be human centric, they should serve humanity and the common good” Episode 26 takes you to a webinar on developing strategies for a trustworthy AI explored at the example of South-eastern Asia. After a quick introduction on how the European Union approaches this challenge, Thilma Komaling, one of the authors of Indonesia’s strategy on Artificial, takes you her home country where AI-assisted tools already help to improve broad access to health care.Thilma shares her more than 20 years of experience in policy development here in this webinar organised by the BBM...
2024-12-2033 min
STETOSKOPResearch Breakfast #08: Ondřej Slabý and Jiří ŠánaOndřej Slabý is head of the Department of Biology at the Faculty of Medicine, leads the Center for Precision Medicine at University Hospital Brno. He is also Chairman of the Czech Health Research Council and Advisor to the Minister of Health. His expertise in cancer biology supports advancements in targeted therapies. Jiří Šána is an associate professor at the Faculty of Medicine and the Masaryk Memorial Cancer Institute. He is a key member of the Ondřej Slabý Research Group and has a strong focus on cancer research, particularly in the areas of molecular biology and genomics. His research contribu...
2024-12-031h 03
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast25 - ELSI Dialogues: Communicating with patient citizens on implementing the European Health Data Space (EHDS)“Without the patient citizen’s data, there is no future for research.”Episode 25 takes you to a workshop on information points for citizens under the European Health Data space. The workshop is jointly organised under the EHDS2Pilot project by BBMRI-ERIC’s ethical, legal and societal implications team and the Spanish Research Council in Brussels – CSIC where the workshop is being held.The project brings together 17 partners including health data access bodies, health data sharing infrastructures and European agencies with the aim to build a pilot version of the European Health Data Space (EHDS...
2024-11-0638 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast24 - canSERV: Training the Next Generation of Cancer ResearchersEpisode 24 introduces you to the canSERV project that focuses on providing over 400 cutting-edge and customised cancer research services. BBMRI-ERIC acts as coordinator for canSERV.The services and tools are made available to the cancer research community EU wide, enable innovative R&D projects and foster precision medicine for patients’ benefit across Europe.Experts from the project walk listeners through its 4th Challenge-Driven Call on “Training the Next Generation of Cancer Researchers”.Early Career Cancer Researchers, for example first-stage researchers (PhD students, junior researchers without PhD), or recognised researchers (postdocs, assistant professors, young investigators) world-wide a...
2024-10-0344 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast23 - Eva Ortega-Paíno profile: “You cannot be a proper researcher without curiosity and curiosity is not only just for science, it’s for living.”“You cannot be a proper researcher without curiosity and curiosity is not only just for science, it’s for living.”Meet Eva Ortega-Paino who, until recently was National Node Director for Spain. This episode profiles her career which has taken her to Secretary General for Research, Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, Spain.Spain joined BBMRI-ERIC as an observer three years ago and Eva was their first Director based at the Spanish National Platform for Biobank and Biomodels - Instituto de Salud Carlos III.Eva was far from new to biobanking, having already been i...
2024-09-2331 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast22 – Congress Radio Special: Europe Biobank Week 2023 – Dr Bo FranzénWelcome to this Europe Biobank Week Congress Radio special. It recorded live from the Europe Biobank Week Congress that happened in Vienna, Austria from 14-17 May 2024.The EBW Congress highlights cutting-edge biobanking innovations and research. Held over four days, it featured expert workshops, keynotes, over 85 oral and 140 poster presentations from across the biobanking community.This episode features the State-of-the-Art speech delivered by Dr. Bo Franzén, Senior Researcher at Cancer Centre Karolinska of the Karolinska Institutet, during the Quality Management and Pre-Analytics session. About Karolinska InstitutetKarolinska Institutet is one of the...
2024-08-2025 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast21 - Congress Radio Special: Europe Biobank Week 2024 - Dr Gillian Bartlett, University of MissouriWelcome to this Europe Biobank Week Congress Radio special. It was recorded live at the Europe Biobank Week Congress that happened in Vienna, Austria from 14-17 May 2024.The EBW Congress highlights cutting-edge biobanking innovations and research. Held over four days, it featured expert workshops, keynotes, over 85 oral and 140 poster presentations from across the biobanking community.Keynotes are an opportunity to hear from leading experts in the field. This episode features the second keynote of the congress, delivered by Dr Gillian Bartlett, Associate Dean for Graduate Research Education, University of Missouri and Co-Director of the SOM...
2024-08-0656 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast20 - Congress Radio Special: Europe Biobank Week 2024 - Sir Rory Collins, UK BiobankWelcome to this Europe Biobank Week Congress Radio special. It recorded live from the Europe Biobank Week Congress that happened in Vienna, Austria from 14-17 May 2024.The EBW Congress highlights cutting-edge biobanking innovations and research. Held over four days, it featured expert workshops, keynotes, over 85 oral and 140 poster presentations from across the biobanking community.Keynotes are an opportunity to hear from leading experts in the field. This episode features the first keynote that was delivered by Sir Rory Collins, Principal Investigator and Chief Executive of UK Biobank.About UK BiobankThe...
2024-07-231h 04
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast19 - 10th anniversary impact stories - part two“Healthcare biobanking and healthcare biobanks are playing an increasingly important role, not only in the biomedical research, but also in transferring knowledge to the health system”. Marialuisa Lavitrano, National Node Director, BBMRI.it.This is part two of a two part podcast which shares impact stories from across BBMRI-ERIC’s Member States and communities that were presented at the BBMRI-ERIC 10th anniversary workshop. Each story highlights the diverse expertise and significant impact of the research infrastructure that our community helps shape and benefits from.In this episode, you will hear impact stories from Quality Management and Biob...
2024-07-0824 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast18 - Congress Radio: Europe Biobank Week 2024 - Day FourVisit the fourth and final day of the Europe Biobank Week Congress in this mini-series covering the event - part of the BBMRI-ERIC Podcast. Europe Biobank Week Congress is happening in Vienna, Austria from 14-17 May 2024. You’ll hear a flavour of the event and key interviews with organisers, speakers and delegates. EBW is the most important event of the year for the global biobanking community. The congress highlights cutting-edge biobanking innovations and research by featuring keynote presentations, panels and workshops. This episode features contributions from:Prof. Josef Haas, Medical University GrazNaila Loudi...
2024-05-1925 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast17 - Congress Radio: Europe Biobank Week 2024 - Day ThreeVisit day three of the Europe Biobank Week Congress in this mini-series covering the event - part of the BBMRI-ERIC Podcast. Europe Biobank Week Congress is happening in Vienna, Austria from 14-17 May 2024. You’ll hear a flavour of the event and key interviews with organisers, speakers and delegates. EBW is the most important event of the year for the global biobanking community. The congress highlights cutting-edge biobanking innovations and research by featuring keynote presentations, panels and workshops. This episode features contributions from:Dr. Ayat Salman, ESBBDr. Gillian Barlett, Associate Dean for Gradua...
2024-05-1619 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast16 - Congress Radio: Europe Biobank Week 2024 - Day TwoVisit day two of the Europe Biobank Week Congress in this mini-series covering the event - part of the BBMRI-ERIC Podcast. Europe Biobank Week Congress is happening in Vienna, Austria from 14-17 May 2024. You’ll hear a flavour of the event and key interviews with organisers, speakers and delegates. EBW is the most important event of the year for the global biobanking community. The congress highlights cutting-edge biobanking innovations and research by featuring keynote presentations, panels and workshops. This episode features contributions from:Professor Martin Polaschek, Austrian Federal Minister of Education Science and R...
2024-05-1523 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast15 - Congress Radio: Europe Biobank Week 2024 - Day OneVisit day one of the Europe Biobank Week Congress in this mini-series covering the event - part of the BBMRI-ERIC Podcast. Europe Biobank Week Congress is happening in Vienna, Austria from 14-17 May 2024. You’ll hear a flavour of the event and key interviews with organisers, speakers and delegates. EBW, organised by BBMRI-ERIC and ESBB, is the most important event of the year for the global biobanking community. The congress highlights cutting-edge biobanking innovations and research by featuring keynote presentations, panels and workshops. This episode features Prof. Jens K Habermann, BBMRI-ERIC Director General, and D...
2024-05-1415 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast14 – 10th anniversary impact stories – part one“I would say that being in BBMRI-ERIC is a very good thing: it makes you sure that you are doing great things and you are going along with other countries which are much bigger, with more resources, more scientist, everything more” Andres Metspalu, BBMRI.ee.This is a two-part episode which shares stories from across BBMRI-ERIC’s Member States and communities that were presented at the BBMRI-ERIC 10th anniversary workshop. Each story demonstrates the wide-ranging expertise and impact of the research infrastructure that our community both shapes and benefits from. In this episode, you will hear imp...
2024-04-1523 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast13 - Prof. Walter Ricciardi on an urgent case for science: "For the first time, the dams that shaped our security are trying to break."“We as scientists, we as professionals, we as leaders have to first of all realise how the situation is changing, a change of epoch, and how to manage. Because for the first time, the dams that shaped our security are trying to break.”This episode shares the keynote address delivered by Professor Walter Ricciardi at the BBMRI-ERIC 10th anniversary workshop. The anniversary event was held at the Permanent Representation of Austria to the European Union, Brussels on 29 February 2024 and brought together key members of the biobanking community to explore BBMRI-ERIC’s impact as a research infrastr...
2024-03-1928 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast12 - How canSERV can accelerate your cancer researchEpisode 12 introduces you to the canSERV project that focuses on providing over 400 cutting-edge and customised cancer research services. BBMRI-ERIC acts as coordinator for canSERV.The services and tools are made available to the cancer research community EU wide, enable innovative R&D projects and foster precision medicine for patients’ benefit across Europe.Experts from the project walk listeners through the Open Call - taking applications until 4 January 2024.Originally a live webinar, the podcast is presented by canSERV consortium members Saba Abdulghani, Jens Habermann, Enzo Medico, Manuela Pausan and Judit Balogh. The Q&A...
2023-12-0440 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast11 - ELSI Dialogues: Organoids - Scientific, ethical and regulatory aspectsOrganoids are defined as three-dimensional (3D) cell culture systems that can be called “mini-organs” as they mimic some of the key multicellular, anatomical and even functional characteristics of real organs. Organoids are praised as a substitute for animal models in preclinical studies. At the same time, organoid technology raises issues around informed consent or privacy of donors.This episode of ELSI Dialogues features multidisciplinary experts discussing ethical, regulatory, and scientific aspects of organoid technology. Following a brief introduction in organoid research, a special focus is placed on biobanking from the patient perspective. The panellists discuss trust, trustworthiness, ther...
2023-11-1540 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast10 - ELSI Dialogues: The Incorporation of Sex and Gender in Medical ResearchThe medical community is moving on a path towards more personalised and effective medical treatments and therapies for everyone. In doing so, it is crucial to integrate sex and gender into research as it has the potential to fuel structural and systemic change.This episode of ELSI Dialogues explores how providing the research community with the resources and information needed to include sex and gender factors into their work will result in more inclusive and impactful results.This topic is viewed from the perspective of researchers and healthcare professionals through subject areas including AI applications...
2023-10-311h 07
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast09 - Biobanking Development: Amsterdam UMC’s International Freezer Challenge Win and Carbon Literacy“I learned that health care has a share of 6 to 8% in our total energy consumption - equal to the aviation sector. Although as health care researchers, we need to face this reality and act.”This episode of the BBMRI-ERIC podcast goes behind Amsterdam UMC’s recent win of the International Freezer Challenge to explore biobanking sustainability and carbon literacy.Jörg Hamann, Head of the Biobank and Management Committee member for The Netherlands' BBMRI National Node, tells Saba Abdulghani, BBMRI’s Head of Biobanking Development, about the significance of the win - Europe's first hospital to achieve...
2023-10-2717 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast08 - ELSI Dialogues: Introduction to the Belgian Biobank Legislation - A Piece of the Puzzle in the Complicated EU Regulatory LandscapeBiobank legislation is not harmonised at the European Union level, and the Member States have taken considerably divergent approaches in how they regulate the field. Whereas some countries do not have specific regulations, others have adopted complex biobank laws.This episode of ELSI Dialogues aims to present the unique legal framework for biobanking that is currently in place in Belgium. The Belgian Biobank law was first adopted in 2008, entered into force in 2018 and underwent an important reform in 2022. Moreover, the law is complemented by an essential piece of self-regulation, namely the Compendium on biobanks issued by the...
2023-07-1346 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast07 - What is a Patient Pillar? Eric Vermeulen, New Chair, Explains - Part Two“This tissue is really representing the patient and that's what I find very interesting about biobanking. You don't need to be there to be in research.”This is the second of a two-part episode exploring the work of the BBMRI Stakeholder Forum Patient Pillar that brings together patient organisations from across Europe to help shape BBMRI’s biobanking related priorities and policies.You will hear from Jana Pavlič-Zupanc, Head of Public Affairs at BBMRI-ERIC, who introduces the value of the Stakeholder Forum Patient Pillar and what makes it unique amongst research infrastructures.We are...
2023-06-2823 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast06 - What is a Patient Pillar? How Patient Representatives are Shaping BBMRI-ERIC and Biobanking - Part One“Cancer is traumatising, and you want to forget it as soon as possible, but some of us believe our experiences can be useful for others.”This first of a two-part episode looks at the work of the BBMRI Stakeholder Forum Patient Pillar that brings together patient organisations from across Europe to help shape BBMRI’s biobanking related priorities and policies.You will meet two members of the Patient Pillar:Kathi Apostolidis, Past President and Chair of the Scientific Committee of the European Cancer Patient Coalition - ECPCDr. Stefanie Hourwaart, member of the Sci...
2023-06-2825 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast05 - ELSI Dialogues: Why ELSI Matters!“I think an ELSI expert is often seen as a patch for projects from the natural sciences. You can ask this ELSI expert anything that has to be solved in a certain way, it has to be a yes or no answer, then it’s done and you never have to talk about it again.” This episode of the BBMRI-ERIC podcast joins the ELSI (ethical, legal, societal issues/implications) team from across Europe when they met in person for the first time since the pandemic.You hear from Michaela Th. Mayrhofer, Melanie Goisauf, Kaya Akyuz, Monica...
2023-02-1544 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast04 - Exploring the Lightweight Distributed Provenance Model for Complex Real–world Environments - biobanking, medical research data and reproducibility“We realised we needed to start something new to address the medical research reproducibility crisis.”Episode four of the BBMRI-ERIC podcast explores a paper that was recently published in Nature. It illustrates a lightweight distributed provenance model designed for complex, real-world, environments. The paper has been researched and written by a wide-ranging group of experts and two of them, BBMRI staff - Rudolf Wittner, IT Scientist and Petr Holub, Chief IT Officer - help to explain the model’s significance for biobanking, reproducibility and the broader field of medical research data.You can access...
2023-01-1331 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast03 - ELSI Dialogues: Understanding the Ethics of AIArtificial Intelligence (AI) applications in medicine are hoped to improve healthcare and to advance health equity. While the technology carries the potential to improve health services, the ethical and societal implications need to be carefully considered to avoid harmful consequences for individuals and groups, especially for the most vulnerable. It is therefore inevitable to identify what types of ethical issues are raised by AI, and to analyse how these issues are tackled in biomedical research.This webinar gives an overview of the results of a comprehensive and systematic review of academic literature as well as workshop outcomes. We wil...
2022-12-1534 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast02 - ELSI Dialogues: Sex and Gender in Biomedical Research - Visualising the Complexity of Sex DeterminationThe "Sex and Gender in Biomedical Research" webinar series, is "Visualising the Complexity of Sex Determination".The speaker, Amanda Montañez, explains the webinar as follows:At Scientific American, we communicate the latest and most important information about science, health, technology, the environment, and society to the public. We often use information graphics to help illuminate complex ideas that are hard to explain fully through words alone. A few years ago, as part of a special issue on sex and gender, I led the development of a graphic on the spectrum of biological sex, a f...
2022-12-1541 min
BBMRI-ERIC Podcast01 - Quality Talk: How IVO Biobank achieved ISO 20387Andrea Wutte, Head of Quality Management at BBMRI-ERIC meets José Antonio López-Guerrero, Scientific Director of IVO Biobank to learn about how his team achieved the biobanking quality standard ISO 20387. IVO had the key support of Manuel Llombart Fuertes, Director General of Fundación Instituto Valencia De Oncología. The episode is introduced by Eva Ortega-Paíno, Spain’s National Node Director. Theme music used with kind permission: 'i need a cup of coffee and some bread for wake up' by In Love With A Ghost
2022-09-2320 min