非黑色素瘤皮肤癌的连续波太赫兹透射成像

Continuous wave terahertz transmission imaging of nonmelanoma skin cancers.

作者信息

Joseph Cecil S, Yaroslavsky Anna N, Neel Victor A, Goyette Thomas M, Giles Robert H

机构信息

Submillimeter-Wave Technology Laboratory, University of Massachusetts Lowell, 175 Cabot St., Lowell, Massachusetts 01854, USA.

出版信息

Lasers Surg Med. 2011 Aug;43(6):457-62. doi: 10.1002/lsm.21078.

DOI:10.1002/lsm.21078

PMID:21761415

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Continuous wave terahertz imaging has the potential to offer a safe, noninvasive medical imaging modality for delineating human skin cancers. Terahertz pulse imaging (TPI) has already shown that there is contrast between basal cell carcinoma and normal skin. Continuous-wave imaging offers a simpler, lower cost alternative to TPI. The goal of this study was to investigate the feasibility of continuous wave terahertz imaging for delineating skin cancers by demonstrating contrast between cancerous and normal tissue in transmission mode.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Two CO(2) optically pumped far-infrared molecular gas lasers were used for illuminating the tissue at two frequencies, 1.39 and 1.63 THz. The transmitted signals were detected using a liquid Helium cooled Silicon bolometer. Fresh skin cancer specimens were obtained from Mohs surgeries. The samples were processed and imaged within 24 hours after surgery. During the imaging experiment the samples were kept in pH-balanced saline to prevent tissue dehydration. At both THz frequencies two-dimensional THz transmission images of nonmelanoma skin cancers were acquired with spatial resolution of 0.39 mm at 1.4 THz and 0.49 mm at 1.6 THz. For evaluation purposes, hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) histology was processed from the imaged tissue.

RESULTS

A total of 10 specimens were imaged and it was determined that for both frequencies, the areas of decreased transmission in the THz image correlated well with cancerous areas in the histopathology. Two negative controls were also imaged. The difference in transmission between normal and cancerous tissue was found to be approximately 60% at both frequencies, which suggests that contrast between normal and cancerous tissue at these frequencies is dominated by differences in water content.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results suggest that intraoperative delineation of nonmelanoma skin cancers using continuous-wave terahertz imaging is feasible.

摘要

背景与目的

连续波太赫兹成像有潜力为描绘人类皮肤癌提供一种安全、无创的医学成像方式。太赫兹脉冲成像（TPI）已表明基底细胞癌与正常皮肤之间存在对比度。连续波成像为TPI提供了一种更简单、成本更低的替代方法。本研究的目的是通过展示透射模式下癌组织与正常组织之间的对比度，来研究连续波太赫兹成像描绘皮肤癌的可行性。

材料与方法

使用两台二氧化碳光泵浦远红外分子气体激光器，以1.39和1.63太赫兹两个频率照射组织。使用液氦冷却的硅测辐射热计检测透射信号。从莫氏手术中获取新鲜的皮肤癌标本。样本在手术后24小时内进行处理和成像。在成像实验期间，样本保存在pH平衡的盐水中以防止组织脱水。在两个太赫兹频率下，获取了非黑色素瘤皮肤癌的二维太赫兹透射图像，在1.4太赫兹时空间分辨率为0.39毫米，在1.6太赫兹时为0.49毫米。为了评估，对成像组织进行苏木精和伊红（H&E）组织学处理。