Genetic mutation testing, extensively utilized in breast and lung cancer, has been recently incorporated into the realm of brain tumors, consequently enhancing the precision of treatment for such tumors.

Within glioblastoma, acknowledged for possessing the most unfavorable prognosis among malignant brain tumors, genetic attributes of tumor tissue, including MGMT promoter methylation, IDH1/2 and TERT promoter mutations, as well as EGFR amplification, are actively employed for both diagnostic and prognostic purposes.

When a patient diagnosed with glioblastoma undergoes genetic testing and the gene's "MGMT" promoter is found to be methylated as opposed to unmethylated, it significantly alters both the treatment approach and the prognosis. A promoter denotes a distinct DNA segment responsible for controlling gene transcription, which involves the conversion of genetic information encoded in DNA into mRNA.

According to a professor of neurosurgery at a university hospital, the life expectancy for individuals with glioblastoma is typically less than three to six months in the absence of treatment, while the inclusion of surgery, radiation, and pharmaceutical intervention results in an average survival period of around one year.

Nonetheless, glioblastoma patients possessing methylated MGMT genes might experience a more favorable prognosis compared to those with unmethylated MGMT genes, primarily due to the presence of treatments that exhibit strong responsiveness.

A different neurosurgeon from another university hospital emphasized that glioblastoma patients lacking methylation of the MGMT promoter are anticipated to exhibit limited responsiveness to the chemotherapy drug temozolomide as well as radiotherapy, consequently leading to an unfavorable prognosis.

On the contrary, glioblastoma patients harboring methylated MGMT genes are projected to exhibit positive responses to both temozolomide and radiation therapy, resulting in an improved prognosis.

According to the Korean Brain Tumor Society’s data, the median survival time for glioblastoma treatment was 12.1 months with radiation alone and 14.6 months with temozolomide plus radiation.

These findings do not account for the characteristics of the MGMT gene, and if the study were limited to patients exclusively possessing methylated MGMT genes, it is plausible that the survival period for glioblastoma patients could potentially be further extended.