Diffuse optical spectroscopy imaging (DOSI) has shown great potential for the early detection of non-responding tumors during neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer, already one day after therapy starts. Patients with rectal cancer receive similar chemotherapy treatment. The rectum geometry and tissue properties of healthy and tumor tissue in the rectum and the requirement of surface contact impose constraints on the probe design. In this work we present the design of a DOSI probe with the aim of early chemotherapy/radiotherapy effectiveness detection in rectal tumors. We show using Monte Carlo simulations and phantom measurements that the colon tissue can be characterized reliably using a source-detector separation in the order of 10 mm. We present a design and rapid prototype of a probe for DOSI measurements that can be mounted on a standard laparoscope and that fits through a standard rectoscope. Using predominantly clinically approved components we aim at fast clinical translation.

Date Published: 4 March 2014
PDF: 9 pages
Proc. SPIE 8927, Endoscopic Microscopy IX; and Optical Techniques in Pulmonary Medicine, 89270G (4 March 2014); doi: 10.1117/12.2035243

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8927:
Endoscopic Microscopy IX; and Optical Techniques in Pulmonary Medicine
Melissa J. Suter; Guillermo J. Tearney M.D.; Thomas D. Wang; Stephen Lam M.D.; Matthew Brenner, Editor(s)