imaging mass spectrometry (iMS) has been rarely used to examine specimens of human brain tumours. in the current study, high quality brain tumour samples were selected by tissue observation. further, iMS analysis was combined with a new hierarchical cluster analysis (iMS-HcA) and region of interest analysis (iMS-Roi). iMS-HcA was successful in creating groups consisting of similar signal distribution images of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and related multiple proteins in primary brain tumours. This clustering data suggested the relation of GFAP and these identified proteins in the brain tumorigenesis. Also, high levels of histone proteins, haemoglobin subunit α, tubulins, and GFAP were identified in a metastatic brain tumour using IMS-ROI. Our results show that IMS-HCA and IMS-ROI are promising techniques for identifying biomarkers using brain tumour samples. Recently, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry has been used to identify diagnostic markers. MALDI-TOF imaging mass spectrometry (MALDI-IMS) now helps to identify phospholipids 1,2 delivered drugs 3 , and peptides in various tissues 4-7. Breast tumour tissue was used in a recently reported study of MALDI-IMS 8. Reports have also been presented regarding IMS being used in the analysis of gastrointestinal, larynx, and ovarian tumours 9,10 , as well as other diseases 11. In our previous study, we also succeeded in identifying proteins related to important myocardial functions such as ATP synthase in acute myocardial infarction 12-14. In the recent five years, clinical formaldehyde-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue has been made available for IMS studies 2,12,15-17. Formaldehyde reacts with amino acid residues, such as arginine-containing amino groups, by methylene-bridging. The bridge makes it challenging to ionize peptides, and study is therefore difficult when using FFPE for IMS. For this reason, alcohol-based non-crosslinking tissue fixative could be an alternative fixative for multiomics tissue analysis, but its usefulness has not been fully verified 18. Some studies have reported that the use of surfactants improved MS sensitivity using considerable limits on subjects and sample amounts for a stable protocol 14. Angel et al. described the availability of matrix metalloproteinase enzymes to derive a better signal 19. In the current study, glioblastoma was selected as the disease of interest for IMS study using FFPE. Glioblastoma is one of the most aggressive brain tumours 20. Treatment of glioblastoma includes a multidisciplinary approach that provides for maximal surgical resection, radiation therapy 21 , and chemotherapy 22,23. The last two therapies primarily target metastatic carcinoma and malignant lymphoma 24. For better treatment, it is crucial to differentiate glioblastoma from metastatic carcinoma and malignant lymphoma. Moreover, for earlier