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Updated: Feb 27, 2026

Diffuse Optical Spectroscopy for the Quantitative Assessment of Acute Ionizing Radiation Induced Skin Toxicity Using a Mouse Model
Published on: May 27, 2016
Early biomarker for radiation-induced wounds: day one post-irradiation assessment using hemoglobin concentration
Lee C L Chin1,2,3, Elina K Cook4, Darren Yohan1
1Department of Physics, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON M5B 2K3, Canada.
Abstract:
Normal tissue radiation toxicities are evaluated subjectively and cannot predict the development of severe side-effects. Using a hand-held diffuse reflectance optical spectroscopy probe, we measured optical parameters in mouse skin 1-4 days after irradiation. Using a radiation toxicity model and a therapeutic mitigator described previously [BMC Cancer14, 614 (2014)], we found that hemoglobin (Hb) levels increased sharply 24 h after irradiation only in the irradiated group without the mitigator. This group also had the largest peak wound areas after 14 days. We conclude that increased Hb one day after skin irradiation predicts the severity of the subsequent irradiation-induced wound.

