Focusing on the debate over informed consent versus the needs of researchers, the first essays analyze the implications of stored tissue samples in clinical settings (for example, obstetrics and pediatrics) and research settings such as the international Human Genome Diversity Project. Next, professionals in medical history, medicine and biomedical research, philosophy, biomedical ethics, and law provide multidisciplinary perspectives. Additional essays discuss special issues in the use of stored tissue samples in forensic and military settings; two of these are written by professionals who helped establish the DNA registries at the FBI and the Department of Defense.
The practices connected with stored tissue samples are variable, the competing interests are important, the stakes are high, and the implications are seemingly without end. Stored Tissue Samples attempts to clarify and answer the multiple questions raised by these rapidly evolvingpractices.