Toward handheld optically guided biopsy combining diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and autofluorescence

Area of Science:

• Medical devices
• Biotechnology
• Optical spectroscopy

Background:

• Percutaneous liver biopsy is crucial for diagnosing liver conditions.
• Enhancing diagnostic yield and accuracy in liver biopsies remains a clinical challenge.
• Current methods may lack precision in differentiating tumorous from healthy liver tissue.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate optical spectroscopy technologies for a handheld, optically guided biopsy device.
• To improve the diagnostic accuracy of percutaneous liver biopsy procedures.
• To develop a system for real-time classification of liver tissues during biopsy.

Main Methods:

• A fiber-optic needle probe combining diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) and autofluorescence (AF) spectroscopy was designed and constructed.
• Miniature spectrometers were integrated for data acquisition.
• Linear discriminant analysis was applied to DRS and AF data from excised liver tissues (healthy and metastatic colorectal cancer).

Main Results:

• The miniaturized DRS and AF spectroscopy system demonstrated high accuracy in distinguishing tumors from healthy liver tissue.
• Sensitivity reached 95% and specificity reached 96%.
• The system was validated on excised liver segments, supporting its potential for in vivo application.

Conclusions:

• The feasibility of miniaturizing a combined DRS and AF spectroscopy system for tissue classification was successfully demonstrated.
• This optical technology supports the development of a handheld, optically guided biopsy device.
• The validated system has the potential to enhance the diagnostic capabilities of liver biopsy procedures.