Bioinspired color-near infrared endoscopic imaging system for molecular guided cancer surgery

• Published in: Journal of biomedical optics 2023-05, Vol.28 (5), p.056002-056002
• Main Authors: George, Mebin B., Lew, Benjamin, Blair, Steven, Zhu, Zhongmin, Liang, Zuodong, Srivastava, Indrajit, Chang, Austin, Choi, Hyungsoo, Kim, Kyekyoon, Nie, Shuming, Singhal, Sunil, Gruev, Viktor
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animal models; Animals; Biomarkers; Cameras; Cancer surgery; Chemical compounds; Color; Color imagery; Endoscopes; Endoscopy; Endoscopy - methods; Epidermal growth factor; FDA approval; Fluorescent Dyes; Fluorophores; Image processing; Imaging; Infrared imaging; Lasers; Light emitting diodes; Lung cancer; Medical imaging; Medical prognosis; Metastasis; Molecular Imaging; Molecular Probes; Near infrared radiation; Neoplasms - diagnostic imaging; Neoplasms - surgery; Optical Imaging - methods; Optics; Patients; Probes; Sensors; Spatial discrimination; Spatial resolution; Surgery; Surgery, Computer-Assisted - methods; Tumors
• ISSN: 1083-3668; 1560-2281
• DOI: 10.1117/1.JBO.28.5.056002

Fluorescently guided minimally invasive surgery is improving patient outcomes and disease-free survival, but biomarker variability hinders complete tumor resection with single molecular probes. To overcome this, we developed a bioinspired endoscopic system that images multiple tumor-targeted probes, quantifies volumetric ratios in cancer models, and detects tumors in samples. We present a new rigid endoscopic imaging system (EIS) that can capture color images while simultaneously resolving two near-infrared (NIR) probes. Our optimized EIS integrates a hexa-chromatic image sensor, a rigid endoscope optimized for NIR-color imaging, and a custom illumination fiber bundle. Our optimized EIS achieves a 60% improvement in NIR spatial resolution when compared to a leading FDA-approved endoscope. Ratio-metric imaging of two tumor-targeted probes is demonstrated in vials and animal models of breast cancer. Clinical data gathered from fluorescently tagged lung cancer samples on the operating room's back table demonstrate a high tumor-to-background ratio and consistency with the vial experiments. We investigate key engineering breakthroughs for the single-chip endoscopic system, which can capture and distinguish numerous tumor-targeting fluorophores. As the molecular imaging field shifts toward a multi-tumor targeted probe methodology, our imaging instrument can aid in assessing these concepts during surgical procedures.