Radiofrequency ablation for liver: Comparison between expert eye and hyperspectral imaging assessment

Area of Science:

• Medical Physics
• Oncology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Liver/hepatic cancer (HC) affects 10% of global cancer patients, causing significant mortality.
• Radiofrequency (RF) ablation is a key thermal ablation technique for HC treatment.
• Current visual assessment (VA) of RF ablation outcomes is subjective and unreliable.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce hyperspectral imaging (HSI) as an objective method for evaluating liver ablation.
• To reduce the time-intensive nature of HSI data analysis for clinical application.
• To enhance the safety and speed of medical decisions regarding RF ablation continuation or cessation.

Main Methods:

• Computed ablated liver area using both visual assessment (VA) and hyperspectral imaging (HSI).
• Developed a method to reduce HSI data analysis time by narrowing spectral bands.
• Identified relevant spectral bands sensitive to changes in liver chromophore concentration post-ablation.

Main Results:

• Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) provides objective assessment of liver ablation, unlike subjective VA.
• Focused analysis on specific spectral bands significantly reduces HSI data processing time.
• The spectral band centered at 630 nm was identified as optimal for objective assessment.

Conclusions:

• Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) offers a viable, objective alternative to VA for liver ablation assessment.
• Optimized HSI analysis, particularly using the 630 nm band, enables faster clinical decision-making.
• This approach supports safer and more efficient RF ablation treatment for liver cancer.