Half a million of us want to donate our data to British science, but it’s languishing unused because of privacy fears | Polly Toynbee

Data supplied to Biobank is not for sale, it’s not for trivial or suspect use, it’s for the good of humankind – and yet I had to jump through hoops to offer it

I delight in messages from UK Biobank, making me feel useful for minimal effort. Back in 2006, with half a million others aged between 40 and 69, I signed up to this magnificent project, the world’s most advanced genetic database.

They took blood, saliva and urine, measured bone density and made notes on exercise, alcohol and family history, with social class, ethnicity, education, employment and income included. They have sequenced my genome and stored samples in freezers at -80C for future researchers seeking causes and cures long after my death.

Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist

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