Using digitized standard stains, the system identifies more than 100 molecular subtypes of central nervous system tumors, delivers results within minutes and could accelerate the diagnosis of brain tumors worldwide. The work appears in Nature Cancer.

Tumors of the brain and spinal cord are extremely diverse. In recent years, it has become clear that many of these tumors can be reliably diagnosed only if their molecular properties are examined in addition to their microscopic appearance. Of particular importance is so-called DNA methylation analysis, which is now considered the gold standard for the accurate classification of many brain tumors.