A novel technique for diagnosing brain tumours could drastically reduce the time patients wait for treatment, potentially shrinking the gap from several weeks to just a few hours, researchers have reported.
Confirming the tumour type usually requires genetic analysis, which in the UK can take up to eight weeks post-surgery — delaying the start of treatments like chemotherapy.
In a study published in Neuro-Oncology, researchers detailed how they used nanopore sequencing technology to significantly speed up this process.
This technology employs specialised devices with membranes embedded with numerous nanopores, each carrying an electrical current. When DNA molecules enter these pores, they are unwound into single strands. As the strands pass through, they cause distinct disruptions in the current based on their nucleotide sequences and modifications.
These disruptions are unique to the DNA’s building blocks, enabling the device to read the genetic code. The resulting sequences are then compared to reference profiles for various brain tumour types using custom-built software developed by the research team.
The cost of this process is approximately £400 per sample, aligning with current genetic testing expenses.
The technology accurately classified 80% of the pre-tested and 90% of the real-time samples within 24 hours, achieving results comparable to conventional methods. More notably, 76% of the newly collected samples were confidently identified within just one hour, enabling clinicians to potentially receive diagnostic results within two hours of sample collection.
The primary aim is to ensure diagnostic information is ready for the patient’s next clinical review, usually within the same week. However, the speed of this approach could also inform intraoperative decisions, such as whether to pursue more extensive surgery or to reassess the benefits of continuing the procedure at all.
