Features and Legal Practice of Dried Blood Spot Card Biobanking in Europe: Balancing Research Potential with Parental and Children’s Rights
Sophie ter Braak, Mette Nyegaard, Christian Munch Hagen, Marie Bækvad-Hansen, Madara Auzenbaha, François Boemer, James R. Bonham, Patricia Borde, Ian Brincat, David Cheillan, Vera Frankova, Leifur Franzson, Ksenija Fumić, Urh Groselj, Tom L. G. M. van den Kerkhof, Riikka Kurkijärvi, Giancarlo la Marca, Tatjana Milenković, Olve Moldestad, Vyacheslav Mitkin, Florentina Moldovanu, Marios Vogazianos, Jürgen G. Okun, Lene Sörensen, Gulnara Svyatova, Ildikó Szatmári, Maja Raičević, Karit Reinson, Trine Tangeraas, Alma Toromanović, Laura Vilarinho, Svetlana Vorslova, Raquel Yahyaoui, Maximillian Zeyda, Dianne Webster, Peter C. J. I. SchielenNeonatal screening using Dried Blood Spot (DBS) cards is an important and successful public health facility in Europe, enabling early detection of congenital disorders for early treatment and prevention of overt disease. Biobanks of stored DBS cards offer significant potential for biomedical research. Biobanking and secondary use of DBS cards also raise ethical and legal issues, particularly concerning the rights of parents and children. This study provides a comprehensive overview of legislation and legal practices governing DBS biobanking across 29 European countries, based on a survey conducted in collaboration with the International Society for Neonatal Screening. Findings reveal a highly heterogeneous landscape: 15 countries have national legislation, five have regional guidelines, and nine lack formal regulations. Only four countries require explicit parental consent for DBS storage, with considerable variation in approval processes for research use. A harmonization of practices, with the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) as a basis for future regulation, supplemented by clearer guidance on ‘public interest’ and robust safeguards for individual rights may lead to more transparent and consistent governance, which is essential to balance scientific progress with the protection of parental and children’s rights in DBS-based research across Europe.