Clinical recording of laser-induced fluorescence spectra for evaluation of tumour demarcation feasibility in selected clinical specialities

Laser-induced autofluorescence spectra from humans were recorded in vivo at three different clinics in a study aimed at investigating the capability of this method to discriminate between malignant tumours and normal surrounding tissues. For the recordings a mobile trolley with the necessary equipment was constructed for use in an examination room or in an operating theatre environment. Laser light was guided through a 600μm optical fibre to the target tissue. The fluorescence from the excited tissue was collected with the same fibre and was fed to an optical multichannel analyser. Two excitation wavelengths were used (337 and 405 nm) in order to optimize the fluorescence signals in two interesting wavelength regions (380–500 and 550–700 nm). Oral and oropharyngeal tumours excited with 405 nm light contained detectable endogenous porphyrins and were in this way discriminated from the normal mucosa. Astrocytoma grade III–IV fluorescence different from that of normal brain tissue, while tumours in the bronchial tree were not detectable using the spectral shape of the pure tissue autofluorescence.