How We Work
If you sign-up within our registry, as an applicant for uranium screening services, we will attempt to combine your public health screening and medical evaluation along with our research priorities. However, you do not need to actually enroll in UMRC research to still benefit from the public health screening program. For our research, we only ask to use your unidentified (anonymous) test results for our various scientific publications.
Current UMRC public health screening and research priorities include analysis of two specimens:
- A urine sample collected over 24 hours – analyzed for content of different uranium isotopes
- A small blood sample – analyzed for chromosomal breaks and genetic damage
Arrangements for taking and shipping these samples will only be made at the time of confirmed participation.
Any UMRC applicant is able to self-register into one of two general categories: 1) an applicant paying own fees and 2) an applicant awaiting UMRC grant to cover fees. Details are as follows:
- An applicant willing to pay the cost of his or her own laboratory fee may expect to pay $1000 – $1500 for the necessary level of laboratory sensitivity. As a fully volunteer run organization, UMRC does not receive any of this money but pays this money to contracted laboratories. Based on number of research participants and other discounts, your fee many be less. You will be given exact quotes of cost to consider before any laboratory test is ordered, even if we already have your specimens. At any time up until the final quote is given you may change your status and await a UMRC research grant. While being able to pay for your own laboratory fee certainly increases the chances of being evaluated and reduces the time you may need to wait, we still offer no guarantee that registration will lead to laboratory or diagnostic evaluation in either case. Only when laboratory arrangement is made and money is received do we promise to delivery analysis and results. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that any form of medical insurance will cover this cost.
- An applicant who would prefer to become a participant only if fees for laboratory analysis can be covered by specific UMRC grants will likely have to wait for a longer period of time, and chances of even becoming a participant are less. Again, only if you have become a confirmed participant, with laboratory procedures arranged, do we promise to deliver personal analysis and results.
We offer no guarantee that all applicants, whether 1) paying or 2) awaiting grants, will ever actually become participants. You are free to modify or delete your registry account for participation at any time. Only when you have become a participant with a set laboratory date are you guaranteed personalized results with analysis. If for any reason laboratory tests are arranged and paid for, and there is a problem with the laboratory test so that it is not conducted as planned, you will be refunded any money paid.
Except under extreme circumstances, both types of participants will have to cover shipping expense for their own samples..