Spatio-temporal map for early cancer detection: Proof of concept

A spatio-temporal map of human cervical tissue is obtained from time-resolved fluorescence images with the dynamic contrast enhanced through principal component analysis (PCA) for clear demarcation of regions of normal and pre-cancerous conditions. Changes in the properties of fluorescence in different environments are captured through fluorescence lifetime maps in the human cervical tissue sample. The correlation embodied in the second principal component (PC) representing sectorial information free of background of the first PC, segregates fluorescence activities, as illustrated in the PC maps. It significantly enhances the contrast of the images which are majorly handicapped by the variations in fluorophore environment. The result is validated on phantoms, mimicking the changes in the environment of normal and abnormal tissues. This spatio-temporal map illustrates the potential of time resolved auto-fluorescence imaging of cervical tissue in combination with PCA to clearly demarcate normal and abnormal regions with enhanced contrast.