Optical histology for cancer detection and PDT treatment assessment

Abstract

High-resolution imaging technologies, such as multiphoton imaging (MPM) and optical coherence tomography (OCT), are capable of high-speed imaging of biological tissues in vivo with subcellular resolution. In brain cancer surgery, it is challenging to distinguish cancer from noncancer intraoperatively. This study shows that MPM can provide label-free images with histological details. Increased cellularity, microvascular proliferation, nuclear pleomorphism and collagen deposition, can be clearly visualized in cancerous human brain tissues. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is an effective treatment for cancers. The change of tumor vasculatures, including a newly-formed microvascular, in response to PDT, is a key assessment parameter for optimizing the treatment effect. We demonstrated the in vivo imaging of PDT effects on mouse tumor model with an ultrahigh-resolution functional OCT. The technologies have shown significant translational potential for cancer detection and PDT treatment assessment.