Biovance

Consent Form

BIOVANCE GROUP LTD — GENETIC & EPIGENETIC TESTING CONSENT TERMS
Effective Date: 15 September 2026
Version: 2.0

  1. Purpose and Clinical Scope
    1.1 Informational & Preventative Focus. The genetic sequencing, polygenic risk profiling, and epigenetic biological age testing services provided by Biovance Group Ltd (“Biovance”, “we”, “us”) are non-diagnostic, wellness-oriented, and preventative health tools. They are designed to deliver educational insight into biological traits, nutritional pathways, epigenetic age markers, and predispositions.
    1.2 Not a Clinical Diagnostic Service. You acknowledge and understand that:
  • These tests do not constitute NHS or clinical diagnostic genetic investigations for known or suspected hereditary diseases (such as single-gene familial cancer syndromes or Huntington’s disease).
  • The results do not provide a definitive diagnosis or predict with certainty that you will or will not develop any medical condition in the future.
  • Epigenetic biological age assessments calculate statistical DNA methylation markers relative to chronological age; they do not predict your actual lifespan, healthspan ceiling, or inevitable health trajectory.
  • Biovance consultations provide lifestyle, nutritional, and preventative context only; they do not constitute specialist clinical genetic counselling or regulated medical treatment.
  1. Nature and Interpretation of Results
    2.1 Probabilistic Insights. Genetic predispositions and polygenic risk scores represent population-level statistical associations derived from contemporary scientific literature. They do not account for every biological variable, environmental factor, or epigenetic modifier.
    2.2 Evolving Science. Genomic science is continuously advancing. Variant classifications and polygenic correlations may be updated or reclassified by the scientific and clinical community over time. Biovance does not guarantee that your historical reports will be re-analysed or updated retrospectively as new genome-wide association studies (GWAS) emerge, unless explicitly included in a subscription service.
  2. Familial and Psychological Considerations
    3.1 Shared Genetic Lineage. Genetic material is inherited and shared with biological relatives, including parents, siblings, children, and extended family. A finding regarding your own predisposition, variant carriage, or trait may have direct physiological or psychological implications for your blood relatives.
    3.2 Responsibility for Disclosure. Biovance owes a duty of strict confidentiality to you as our client and will never disclose your results to any third party or family member. You are solely responsible for deciding whether, when, and how to share any findings with family members.
  3. Sample Ownership & Human Tissue Act 2004 Compliance
    4.1 Qualifying Consent Under UK Law. Under Section 45 of the Human Tissue Act 2004 (HTA), it is a criminal offence in the United Kingdom to have bodily material (including blood, saliva, or cheek cells) with the intention of analysing human DNA without qualifying consent.
    4.2 Strict Prohibition on Third-Party Testing. You warrant and declare that:
  • You are at least 18 years of age (Biovance strictly prohibits genetic testing for individuals under 18);
  • The biological sample (venous blood, capillary blood, saliva, or buccal swab) provided is exclusively your own personal bodily material; and
  • You are not submitting a sample on behalf of, or pretending to be, another individual. Submitting another person’s bodily tissue without lawful authority is illegal under UK statute and will result in immediate cancellation, report invalidation, and potential referral to regulatory or law enforcement authorities.
  1. Secondary Findings & The Right Not to Know
    5.1 Targeted Analysis. Biovance panels are targeted toward preventative wellness, metabolic health, pharmacogenetic tendencies, and actionable lifestyle traits. Our partner laboratories filter out and do not proactively analyse or report on unrequested high-penetrance mutations for late-onset, untreatable neurological conditions (e.g., HTT expansion for Huntington’s disease).
    5.2 Advance Preferences. If you wish to exclude specific categories of wellness trait data from your dashboard or final report, you must notify us in writing at hello@biovance.co.uk prior to your biological sample being submitted to the laboratory. Once a report has been generated and issued to you, data cannot be retrospectively redacted from historical files.
  2. Insurance and Employment Implications
    6.1 UK Code on Genetic Testing and Insurance. Biovance complies with the voluntary agreement established between the UK Government and the Association of British Insurers (ABI) — the Code on Genetic Testing and Insurance:
  • Under the Code, UK life, critical illness, and income protection insurers agreed not to ask for, or take into account, the results of predictive genetic tests, except under narrow thresholds (such as life insurance coverage exceeding £500,000 where a predictive test for Huntington’s disease has been undertaken).
  • Most lifestyle, wellness, and preventative predisposition tests do not fall under mandatory insurance disclosure criteria.
    6.2 Individual Policyholder Responsibility. Insurers’ rules differ for international policies, clinical diagnostic tests, or specific commercial coverages. Biovance accepts no liability for any commercial, employment, or insurance implications resulting from your decision to test or disclose your data. You are advised to review your policy agreements before proceeding.
  1. Independent Clinical Genetic Counselling
    If your report identifies a significant risk factor or complex genetic predisposition that causes distress or warrants specialist medical investigation, Biovance strongly recommends seeking formal genetic counselling via an NHS referral from your GP or through an accredited private clinical genetics service. Biovance consultants provide lifestyle interpretations only and cannot conduct clinical genetic risk stratification.
  2. Physical Sample Handling, Storage, and Destruction
  • Laboratory Processing: Biological samples are handled strictly by accredited third-party clinical laboratories holding UKAS ISO 15189 accreditation and Care Quality Commission (CQC) registration.
  • Sample Custody: Physical specimens are not held at Biovance’s registered office (22 Acorn Lane). They are couriered directly under temperature-controlled protocols to the laboratory.
  • Destruction Schedule: In compliance with HTA guidelines, your physical biological sample is held only for as long as necessary to complete quality-controlled extraction and analysis. Physical samples are securely incinerated and destroyed within 30 to 60 days following report completion. Biovance does not maintain long-term biobanks.
  1. UK GDPR Special Category Data Governance
  • Explicit Consent for Processing (Art 9(2)(a)): Your DNA profile, genetic variants, and epigenetic markers constitute Article 9 Special Category Data under UK GDPR. We process this data during the active service phase solely on the basis of your explicit consent provided herein.
  • Clinical Governance Retention (Art 9(2)(f)): Once generated, digital reports and consultation notes are retained for 8 years under Article 9(2)(f) (establishment, exercise, or defence of legal claims) and the Limitation Act 1980, satisfying private clinical governance standards.
  • Data Security: Genetic files are encrypted at rest using AES-256 standards, transmitted via TLS 1.3 encryption, and pseudonymised when communicating with laboratory systems. We do not sell or licence your genetic records to pharmaceutical firms, research consortiums, or third-party advertisers.
  1. Withdrawal of Consent
    You may withdraw your consent for sample analysis at any time prior to laboratory processing by sending written notice to hello@biovance.co.uk.
  • If your sample has not yet been processed by the laboratory, analysis will be halted immediately, and the physical sample destroyed. Refunds will be handled in accordance with Section 7 of our Terms and Conditions.
  • If laboratory analysis has already been completed and a report issued, withdrawal of consent will terminate active data processing, but historical digital diagnostic records will be archived in secure, restricted-access storage for the remainder of our 8-year clinical governance period.
  1. Affirmative Declarations & Explicit Consent
    To complete your order and initiate testing, you must actively confirm the following statutory and regulatory declarations:
  • Age & Identity: I confirm I am aged 18 or older, resident in the UK, and that the biological sample provided for testing is strictly my own.
  • HTA Compliance: I provide qualifying consent under Section 45 of the Human Tissue Act 2004 for the lawful collection, handling, DNA analysis, and eventual destruction (within 30–60 days) of my biological sample.
  • Non-Diagnostic Scope: I understand that Biovance tests are probabilistic, preventative wellness tools, not formal clinical diagnoses, and that results do not guarantee specific future health outcomes.
  • Familial & Insurance Context: I have reviewed the familial, psychological, and insurance considerations outlined in this document, including the UK Code on Genetic Testing and Insurance.
  • Special Category Data Consent: In accordance with Article 9(2)(a) UK GDPR, I give explicit consent for Biovance Group Ltd and its accredited laboratory partners to process my health, genetic, and epigenetic data to generate my personal reports and deliver consultations.
  1. Contact & Clinical Administration
    For questions regarding sample logistics, consent revocation, or data privacy:
  • Data Controller: Biovance Group Ltd
  • Registered Address: 22 Acorn Lane, EN6 4JQ
  • Email: hello@biovance.co.uk
  • Regulatory Reference: Human Tissue Authority (HTA) / Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)