NIR Raman Spectroscopy of Healthy and Diseased Esophagus

Due to chronic duodeno-gastro-esophageal reflux, the epithelial lining of the esophagus can undergo a change to a more intestinal like type of epithelium. This condition, referred to as Barrett’s esophagus, markedly increases the risk of developing esophageal adenocarcinoma [1]. This type of cancer is rapidly increasing in western society and shows a very high mortality, primarily due to late detection. Early detection of malignancy can significantly increase survival rates. Most detection methods depend on histological examination from endoscopically collected biopsies. However, there are no endoscopically clearly observable differences between healthy tissue, metaplasia and severe displasia. Therefore it is necessary to randomly collect biopsies, with a significant risk of missing malignant degenerations.