Nonscanning large-area Raman imaging for ex vivo/in vivo skin cancer discrimination

TL;DR

This paper introduces a rapid, nonscanning Raman imaging technique using integral field spectroscopy for effective ex vivo and in vivo skin cancer discrimination.

Contribution

It adapts astronomical IFS technology to Raman imaging, enabling quick, full-field skin cancer detection without slow scanning.

Findings

Successful recording of Raman images of healthy and cancerous skin biopsies.

Demonstrated potential for real-time skin cancer diagnosis.

Enhanced imaging speed compared to traditional scanning methods.

Abstract

Imaging Raman spectroscopy can be used to identify cancerous tissue. Traditionally, a step-by-step scanning of the sample is applied to generate a Raman image, which, however, is too slow for routine examination of patients. By transferring the technique of integral field spectroscopy (IFS) from astronomy to Raman imaging, it becomes possible to record entire Raman images quickly within a single exposure, without the need for a tedious scanning procedure. An IFS-based Raman imaging setup is presented, which is capable of measuring skin ex vivo or in vivo. It is demonstrated how Raman images of healthy and cancerous skin biopsies were recorded and analyzed.