New US lab opens advanced genomic testing for glioblastoma patients
A new laboratory in the United States has started accepting tumour samples from patients with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, for advanced genomic testing. The Glioblastoma Foundation announced on Saturday, 31 October, that its lab, called Gliolab, is now open for samples.
The test is called Whole-Genome DNA Methylation Profiling, and it uses the Epignostix Classifier. It reads chemical markers on the tumour’s DNA at hundreds of thousands of places, then uses machine learning and artificial intelligence to classify the tumour and confirm the diagnosis. It also reports other key details, including MGMT promoter methylation, the tumour’s class and subclass, and copy-number changes in 29 genes linked to glioblastoma. The Foundation says the test is currently available at only a handful of institutions in the United States.
The Foundation says the lab, based in Durham, North Carolina, is believed to be the first non-profit laboratory in the United States certified for clinical testing and dedicated only to glioblastoma. Standard treatment for the disease — surgery, radiation and the chemotherapy drug temozolomide — has changed little since 2005, and the Foundation says better testing is needed to understand why tumours differ from patient to patient.
Why it matters
Genomic testing can change how a brain tumour is diagnosed and treated. In a landmark study published in Nature, involving more than 1,000 central nervous system tumours, adding methylation profiling changed or refined the diagnosis in about 12 percent of cases. Separate research from the US National Cancer Institute found it influenced clinical decisions in about 15 percent of tumours that were hard to diagnose. For patients, a clearer diagnosis can mean treatment matched more closely to their own tumour.
What happens next
Doctors, researchers and treatment centres can now send eligible patient samples to Gliolab. With patient consent, the data from testing will also feed research into the disease, including work on biomarkers and future clinical trials. The lab plans to add more tests, including comprehensive genomic profiling and gene fusion testing, by mid-2027.
This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.
Sources
- https://www.morningstar.com/news/accesswire/1244691msn/glioblastoma-foundations-genomic-testing-research-laboratory-now-accepting-patient-samples-for-genomic-testing (Morningstar / ACCESS Newswire, 31 October 2026)
- https://lifestyle.houstonnewstoday.com/story/980943/glioblastoma-foundations-genomic-testing-research-laboratory-now-accepting-patient-samples-for-genomic-testing/ (Houston News Today / ACCESS Newswire, 31 October 2026)
