Intraoperative assessment of laryngeal malignancy using elastic light single-scattering spectroscopy: A pilot study

The elastic light single-scattering spectroscopy (ELSSS) system is a new tool for the real-time diagnosis of cancerous lesions. In the current study, we have employed ELSSS to investigate its ability in differentiation between normal and cancerous larynx tissues ex vivo.

Basic science study in assessment of laryngeal malignancy using spectroscopy.

ELSSS spectra of the larynx tissue were acquired using a single-fiber optical probe. Ex vivo spectroscopic measurements were acquired on 95 laryngeal lesions of 40 patients. Average slopes of the spectra in the wavelength range of 450 to 750 nm were calculated. The signs of the spectral slopes were positive for benign and negative for cancerous larynx tissues. Histopathology results were used as a gold standard to define sensitivity and specificity.

The ELSSS system correctly defined 38 out of 41 malignant tissues as cancerous; three of them were misclassified as benign. All benign tissues were correctly classified. Moderate, severely dysplastic, and malignant tissues were correctly classified as cancerous. The system could not classify mild dysplastic tissues either benign or cancerous, whereas nearly half of them were classified as benign and the other half as malignant. The signs of the spectral slopes were used as a discrimination parameter between benign and cancerous (moderate, severely dysplastic, and malignant) lesions with a sensitivity and specificity of 94% and 100%, respectively.

The ELSSS system has the potential to be used as an adjunctive tool in the diagnosis of cancerous laryngeal tissues in real time and noninvasively. This new diagnostic technique may reduce the number of negative biopsies.

NA Laryngoscope, 127:611-615, 2017.