International Perspectives on the Collection, Storage, And Testing of Human Biospecimens in HIV Research (In the Field‪)‬

Biomedical research that seeks to advance health knowledge and medical practice is an overall social good. However, there is a wide range of professional and lay perspectives regarding the distribution of benefit from research involving human biospecimens. The questions surrounding such research are generally described in terms of property and ownership based on North (1) concepts of selfhood and the collective good. (2) But with the increasing globalization of biomedical research, the framing of such debates must also expand. Ethnographic research indicates that people in many cultures and societies invest human biospecimens with value and meaning. (3) Understanding societal norms and cultural beliefs concerning research with human biospecimens is important for ensuring ethical obligations are met and the benefits of scientific advancement are mutually received. Anecdotal reports suggest that collecting blood and other biospecimens (e.g., breast milk, placental tissue, saliva, semen, urine, and vaginal swabs) have sometimes resulted in controversy in a wide range of cultural settings. Examples include concerns that collected blood will be used for satanic purposes, that confidential and identifiable information will be disclosed, and that biospecimens from poor people in the South will be used in treatments for patients in wealthy countries or to create new drugs that will enrich pharmaceutical companies with no benefit to those donating the material.