Endoscopy imaging of 5-ALA-induced PPIX fluorescence for detecting early neoplasms in the oral cavity

A digitized fluorescence endoscopy imaging system combined with 5-Aminolevulinic Acid (5-ALA) induced Protoporphyrin IX (PPIX) has been developed for the detection of neoplasms in oral cavity. It mainly consists of the illumination console, fluorescence detection unit, computer system for image acquisition, processing and analysis, and online image display system as well. The developed system can produce both the digital and video fluorescence images in real time, and can be used to quantify fluorescence images acquired. Preliminary results from the Head and Neck clinic show that high sensitivity and high specificity can be achieved. Furthermore, applying the intensity ratios at two different wavelength regions, the developed system shows the capability of differentiating between different histopathological stages of oral lesions, suggesting a significant potential for realizing the non-invasive optical biopsy for early cancer diagnosis.