Design and evaluation of a novel Transillumination SFDI system for quantitative assessment of tissuesections for rapid, label-free cancer margin detection

Abstract: This study investigates the potential of Spatial Frequency Domain Imaging (SFDI) as a non-invasive imaging technique for tissue analysis in the context of Mohs surgery, a standard procedure for skin cancer removal with margin control. The current practice of performing multiple histopathologic sections during the procedure is time-consuming and labor-intensive. SFDI, utilizing optical measurements, offers quantitative imaging of biological tissues, enabling the assessment of their function and structure. This makes it particularly suitable for imaging sensitive tissues like the skin and the eye. By accurately measuring the optical properties of tissues, a deeper understanding of their characteristics and the interaction of light with tissue can be achieved. In this study, a novel transillumination SFDI system was designed and utilized to obtain spectral data from examined 2 mm thick tissue-simulating phantoms. The results demonstrated the potential of the transmission-based SFDI as a valuable tool in tissue analysis,providing rapid and accurate information about tissue properties. The implementation of transmission-based SFDI system holds promise for enhancing tissue-conserving surgeries. By enabling direct analysis of tissue properties at the point of care, this system could eliminate the need for histopathologic processing. Consequently, it can provide rapid and accurate information about tissue characteristics without the need for histopathologic processing, allowing for more precise and efficient surgical procedures and better patient outcomes