UK Biobank's Wrap Up 2024

As 2024 comes to an end, we’re wrapping up the year that was by celebrating some of our favourite moments from the last 12 months. 

Professor Sir Rory Collins, Principal Investigator and Chief Executive of UK Biobank, said: “At our annual conference in December, it was gratifying to hear UK Biobank described as the gift that keeps on giving. Thank you to all of our participants for your continued support in 2024, and to the hardworking and dedicated teams that deliver UK Biobank. Without all of you, none of the extraordinary discoveries made by scientists around the world during 2024 would have emerged. UK Biobank makes the impossible possible: I’m excited to see what impossibilities UK Biobank makes possible in 2025!" 

 

Global Researcher Access Fund launch 

In April we announced the launch of a new fund to cover the application costs of UK Biobank approved researchers from less wealthy countries. “It’s a fantastic initiative in my view”(1) said Dr Lauren Carson, Head of Research Development at UK Biobank. It’s hoped that this new fund will triple the number of projects carried out, currently standing at around 50(1). We have already received 77 applications from 26 countries, helping to further democratise worldwide access to our database.  

 

10 years of our imaging project 

2024 marked a decade of our world-leading imaging study, which aims to scan the whole bodies of 100,000 people. More than 90,000 participants have had their brains, hearts, abdomens and bones scanned so far, providing researchers with unprecedented insight into how the body ages.  

"UK Biobank has had a revolutionary effect on many aspects of science,"(2) said Dr Nils Muhlert, who uses brain images in his research. "It's a real thing to be proud of.” 

Data from the imaging project has already been used to look at the structure of the heart in more detail than was previously possible, see how stress affects the brain, suggest new ways to diagnose hip osteoarthritis, and so much more. 

 

2024 scientific conference 

We hosted our annual Scientific Conference at the QEII in London in December, with more than 700 people in attendance and 1,450 streaming online from over 70 countries around the world. Attendees had the chance to hear about how access to primary care data would be transformational for the dataset, future projects to enhance our data and a taste of the scientific discoveries being powered by UK Biobank.  

For the first time, we also invited over 250 UK Biobank colleagues to the event to celebrate all their efforts this year. All sessions were recorded and are available to view online.  

 

Over 14,000 peer reviewed articles 

The number of peer-reviewed research publications using UK Biobank data surpassed 14,000 this year. Researchers around the globe are using our treasure trove of data to drive the discovery of new diagnostics, treatments and cures. These studies are increasing our understanding of diseases such as dementia, cancer and depression.  

UK Biobank Early Career Researcher of the Year Award runner up Saba Ishrat hopes “other researchers all around the world [will] take advantage of this incredible data”. 

With over 20,000 active researchers currently using our data, we’re excited to see this figure grow in years to come.  

 

Two Secretary of State visits 

We hosted two Secretaries of State for Science, Innovation and Technology in 2024; first Michelle Donelan in February and later Peter Kyle in July, who was joined by Science Minister, Lord Patrick Vallance. The second visit was part of a new funding announcement for UK Biobank from the UK Government and Amazon Web Services of £16 million. Peter Kyle said “you can’t not be inspired and totally energised”(3) after having a tour of UK Biobank and meeting two of our fantastic volunteers. 

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1. Researcher Professional News - UK Biobank gives hard-up researchers free access to data 
2. BBC Manchester - DNA store has 'revolutionary' effect -scientists 
3. The Mirror - Exclusive: 'I will use tech to prevent cancer breaking up families,' Science Secretary Peter Kyle vows