More Than a Tissue Collection Kit
Sometimes, the most meaningful moments in cancer research happen far from the laboratory. Recently, I found myself standing at an airport carrying something that looked unusual to most travelers: a specialized tissue collection kit. Inside was everything needed to safely transport a precious cancer tissue sample that could one day help researchers uncover new discoveries for patients with rare cancers.
As I approached the TSA checkpoint, I knew there would be questions. There almost always are. The TSA supervisor came over to inspect the kit. I explained that I worked with the Rare Cancer Research Foundation and that the kit was designed to help collect and transport donated tumor tissue for research. I shared how patients who choose to donate their tissue are giving researchers one of the most valuable resources they have - the opportunity to study the biology of cancers that are often too rare to understand through traditional research alone.
As we talked, something changed. Her questions became personal. Her expression softened. Then, with tears in her eyes, she quietly shared that she was a cancer patient herself. She understood the uncertainty that comes with a diagnosis. She understood the hope that comes from research. And she understood that every tissue donation represents someone choosing to help future patients, even while facing their own cancer journey. Without hesitation, she told me, “We’re going to get this through.”
She personally escorted me, and the tissue collection kit, to the front of the TSA line. She carefully supervised the screening process, making sure the kit was handled appropriately and reached the other side safely. When everything was cleared, she smiled. Then she gave me a hug. In that moment, I knew the hug wasn’t just for me. It was a hug for every patient who has donated tissue hoping their experience might help someone else. It was a hug for every researcher searching for patterns that could lead to new treatments. It reminded me why this work matters so deeply.
People often think research begins with microscopes, sequencing machines, or sophisticated laboratories. But research begins much earlier. It begins with a patient saying, “If my tissue can help someone else, I want it to", and with healthcare teams, couriers, airline staff, TSA officers, pathologists, biobank professionals, researchers, and countless others working together to protect something incredibly valuable.
At the Rare Cancer Research Foundation, we often talk about accelerating research by connecting donated tissue and clinical data with scientists around the world. What we don’t talk about enough are the human moments that make that mission possible.
This encounter reminded me that cancer touches every community and every profession. The people who make research possible aren’t only scientists and physicians. They’re also everyday people whose own experiences inspire extraordinary acts of kindness. I’ll never forget that TSA supervisor. Her actions that day were so much bigger than helping a tissue collection kit make its flight. She helped carry forward the possibility that somewhere, someday, the research made possible by that donation could change the life of another cancer patient. And that is a journey worth protecting.
-Barbara Van Hare, President, Pattern.org