Every cancer is unique because every person is unique, and one of the most important weapons in any cancer battle is information. Isabl offers that in abundance through rapid sequencing of cancer cells' entire genomes, potentially showing which therapies will and won't be effective within days. The company has received a breakthrough designation from the FDA and raised $3 million to bring its approach to market.

The last 10 years have brought numerous medical advances due to the commoditization of genomic processes from sequencing to analysis, and cancer treatment is no exception. In fact, because cancer is (though it is a simplification) a genetic mutation that has gotten out of hand, understanding those genes is an especially promising line of research.

Panel tests look within the DNA of cancerous cells for mutations in a selection of several hundred genes known to affect prognosis and clinical strategy. For instance, a cancer may have certain mutations that render it susceptible to radiation treatment but resistant to chemo, or vice versa — it's incredibly helpful to know which.

Isabl co-founder and CEO Elli Papaemmanuil explains that however helpful panel tests are, they're only the beginning.

"These tests have been designed very carefully to look for the most common mutations, and they have revolutionized cancer diagnosis for patients with common cancers," she said. "But patients with rare cancers — and what we define as a rare cancer is still a third of patients — don't benefit from them."

Even many with common cancers may find that their condition does not involve mutations of these most predictive genes. The relevant genes are somewhere among the other two billion base pairs — current tests only look at about 1% of the genome.

While the technology exists to look at that other 99%, it has historically been expensive and slow compared with panels, and analysis of the resulting large body of data was likewise difficult and time consuming. But Isabl's tests show that it's definitely worthwhile.