A new rapid test for brain tumors can diagnose patients while they are still on the operating table.
Scientists called the development “revolutionary” and said it could guarantee early treatment for those who “don’t have time on their side.”
The test was developed by the University of Nottingham’s Brain Tumor Research Center of Excellence and can diagnose forms of cancer while the patient is still undergoing surgery.
The NHS has started using the diagnostic tool, which can reduce waiting times for a diagnosis from eight weeks to two hours. It could also ensure early access to clinical trials for some patients.
Professor Frankie Swords, medical director of the NHS, said the rapid test was “a huge step forward for patients” with the “potential to completely transform the way we diagnose brain tumours”.
It also means patients can start receiving treatment sooner, which could save lives and avoid uncertainty.
It is a genomic test, which means it analyzes the genetic code of a tumor sample within a few hours. NHS England will trial the new tool in five specialist centers across the country, before rolling it out more widely.
Stuart Smith, consultant neurosurgeon at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust and co-lead of the university’s Center of Research Excellence, said: “I am very proud to have been part of this exceptional team who created this rapid genomic test, which will save valuable waiting time for patients who are potentially being told they don’t have time on their side.
“The ability to have detailed information about the tumor at the time decisions are made in the operating room is a game-changer. »
Rather than looking at a tumor under a microscope, the test allows doctors to get faster and more accurate results. Small tissue samples are sent from the tumor to a pathology lab, where they are placed in a shoebox-sized sequencing machine made by Oxford Nanopore. Inside, DNA molecules pass through a nanopore – a small hole – revealing the unique genome that defines the tumor type.
Primary brain tumors are the leading cause of death in children and adults under 40 in the UK.
The specialist centers where the test will be rolled out for the first time will be Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Birmingham University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, King’s College Hospital and Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
The test will then be rolled out to sites in Bristol, Oxford, Leeds and Manchester.
Gn Health
