# Rapid new test transforms brain tumour diagnosis

- Show: Global News Podcast
- Published: 2026-09-26
- Canonical: https://podc.club/en/episode/135067274_4a18dc0699cd.html
- Audio: http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0pcjb64.mp3
- Source: Edited from a machine transcript of the first 30 minutes of the episode. Not an official summary.

A rapid genomic test developed in the UK can now diagnose brain tumours in as little as two hours during surgery, slashing a wait that previously took six to eight weeks. Ukraine's President Zelensky has announced that US President Trump has finalised a decision to grant a licence for domestic production of Patriot interceptor missiles, while Filipino domestic worker Mary Jane Veloso has received a presidential pardon after spending nearly fifteen years on death row in Indonesia. Meanwhile, Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo have surged 73 percent in three weeks, prompting the WHO to warn of a critical shortage of healthcare workers.

## What this episode answers

### How does the nanopore rapid genomic test for brain tumours work, and what makes it different from conventional diagnosis methods?

A shoebox-sized nanopore sequencer reads the electrical signals produced as DNA molecules pass through minute holes to build a genomic fingerprint of the tumour, delivering a result in about two hours; conventional genomic analysis to confirm tumour type has routinely taken six to eight weeks after surgery.

### How long would it realistically take for the Patriot manufacturing licence announced by President Zelensky to become operational?

Even if the licence is granted, building out manufacturing capacity for engines and rocket bodies would take anywhere from several months to up to two years, and Trump has previously reversed his position on the idea without explanation, so BBC correspondent Sasha Schiltach urges caution.

### Why was Mary Jane Veloso sentenced to death in Indonesia, and how did she eventually receive a pardon?

She was sentenced to death after 2.6 kilograms of heroin were found hidden in her suitcase lining in Indonesia in 2010, though she maintained she believed she was going to work in Malaysia and the suitcase had been handed to her by someone else, with her trial lacking adequate interpretation; after a 2024 prisoner transfer agreement signed by President Marcos saw her sentence commuted to life imprisonment upon repatriation (Indonesia having no death penalty exemption but Philippines having none at all), she was ultimately granted an absolute pardon by the president.

### What conditions are young children facing in Ebola treatment facilities in Congo?

In the 30-bed isolation ward described by MSF paediatrician Dr Rupa Narra, 20 to 30 percent of patients were children under five with an average age of one and a half, and the child mortality rate during her placement reached 80 to 90 percent.

### How does rapid intraoperative genomic diagnosis affect surgical decision-making and the speed with which treatment can begin for brain tumour patients?

Rapid intraoperative genomic diagnosis let neuropathologist Dr Simon Payne relay a likely diagnosis (glioblastoma) to the operating theatre about 90 minutes after the sample arrived, enabling neurosurgeon Stuart Smith to make an immediate, fully informed decision about the scope of the operation, and it let the patient learn his diagnosis within days rather than weeks so chemotherapy and radiotherapy could begin far sooner.

## Article

## A shoebox-sized machine delivers a brain tumour diagnosis in two hours

More than 12,000 people are diagnosed with brain tumours in the UK every year, and until now the genomic analysis needed to confirm the exact tumour type has routinely taken six to eight weeks after surgery. Scientists at the University of Nottingham, working alongside hospital clinicians, have developed a rapid genomic test that compresses that waiting period to just two hours.

The first patient to benefit was Steve Palmer, 55, who underwent surgery at Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham. A tumour measuring five to six centimetres in diameter had been found in his right frontal lobe, and tissue samples taken during the operation were sent directly to the pathology laboratory. There, a sequencer roughly the size of a shoebox reads the electrical signals produced as DNA molecules pass through nanopores — minute holes — to build a genomic fingerprint unique to the tumour.

About 90 minutes after the sample arrived, consultant neuropathologist Dr Simon Payne called the operating theatre. "Taking into account the overall picture, including copy number changes, glioblastoma is the most likely diagnosis," he told the surgical team. Neurosurgeon Stuart Smith was then able to make an immediate, fully informed decision about the scope of the operation. Steve was told his diagnosis within days of surgery rather than weeks, allowing chemotherapy and radiotherapy to begin far sooner. A complete genetic profile also opens the door to clinical trial eligibility. Steve himself said: "Because the diagnosis was fast, I felt ready to move straight on to the next phase of treatment. It removed weeks of anxiety."

## Trump reported to have finalised Patriot manufacturing licence for Ukraine

As Russian air strikes continue, Ukraine faces an urgent need to replenish its stock of US-made Patriot interceptor missiles. President Zelensky has announced that President Trump has taken a final decision to grant Ukraine a licence to manufacture Patriots domestically.

BBC global correspondent Sasha Schiltach urges caution. In July, Trump said "let them make it themselves — that's pretty cool," only to reverse course weeks later with no explanation, saying America "should be careful." Even if a licence is granted, establishing a production line — building out the manufacturing capacity for engines and rocket bodies — would take anywhere from several months to up to two years. The US itself is also not in a position to supply ready-made missiles immediately, as Pentagon stockpiles have been drawn down by use in the Middle East. Separately, Zelensky confirmed that Ukraine is working with several European countries to develop its own ballistic missile interceptor system, known as Freia.

## After 15 years on death row, Filipino domestic worker Veloso receives pardon

Mary Jane Veloso (メアリー・ジェーン・ベロソ) was arrested in April 2010 at Yogyakarta, Indonesia, after 2.6 kilograms of heroin were found hidden in the lining of her suitcase. She had believed she was being placed in work in Malaysia; she consistently maintained that she was told at the last moment to travel to Indonesia instead and that the suitcase had been handed to her by someone else. Her trial was conducted without adequate interpretation — she did not speak Indonesian — and in 2015 she was scheduled to be executed alongside eight other death-row prisoners, but the Philippine government's intervention halted her execution alone.

In 2024, Philippine President Marcos signed a prisoner transfer agreement between the two countries. Because the Philippines has no death penalty, her sentence was reduced to life imprisonment upon repatriation, and she has now been granted an absolute pardon by the president. She is regarded in the Philippines as a victim of human trafficking; the individual who arranged her travel has been convicted of human trafficking in the Philippines and sentenced to life imprisonment. Millions of Filipinos work abroad every year, and Veloso's ordeal has thrown a sharp light on the vulnerabilities facing migrant workers.

## Congo Ebola cases up 73 percent in three weeks, with infants among the victims

The WHO has warned that there are insufficient personnel to respond to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in North Kivu province in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Cases have risen 73 percent over the past three weeks, and the cumulative death toll has surpassed 3,700.

Dr Rupa Narra, a paediatrician with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), spent six weeks working in Butembo. In her 30-bed isolation ward, between 20 and 30 percent of patients were children under five, with an average age of one and a half years. Among those admitted was a woman who had fled fighting wearing only one sandal, carrying a baby — that baby did not survive. Dr Narra said the child mortality rate during her placement reached 80 to 90 percent, and the only moment of light in an otherwise devastating experience came when staff in Congo messaged her after she returned home to say that two of four children in her care had recovered and been discharged.

## Takeaways

- A nanopore rapid genomic test can confirm a brain tumour diagnosis in two hours during surgery, dramatically accelerating both the surgeon's intraoperative decisions and the start of post-operative treatment.
- President Trump is reported to have finalised a Patriot manufacturing licence for Ukraine, but production could take up to two years to begin, and Trump's previous reversal on the issue leaves the outcome uncertain.
- Ebola cases in Congo have risen 73 percent in three weeks, with child mortality rates in treatment facilities reaching 80 to 90 percent, underscoring a severe and worsening humanitarian crisis.