Discriminating basal cell carcinoma from perilesional skin using high wave-number Raman spectroscopy

J Biomed Opt. 2007 May-Jun;12(3):034004. doi: 10.1117/1.2750287.

Abstract

An expanding body of literature suggests Raman spectroscopy is a promising tool for skin cancer diagnosis and in-vivo tumor border demarcation. The development of an in-vivo diagnostic tool is, however, hampered by the fact that construction of fiber optic probes suitable for Raman spectroscopy in the so-called fingerprint region is complicated. In contrast, the use of the high wave-number region allows for fiber optic probes with a very simple design. We investigate whether high wave-number Raman spectroscopy (2800 to 3125 cm(-1)) is able to provide sufficient information for noninvasive discrimination between basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and noninvolved skin. Using a simple fiber optic probe, Raman spectra are obtained from 19 BCC biopsy specimens and 9 biopsy specimens of perilesional skin. A linear discriminant analysis (LDA)-based tissue classification model is developed, which discriminates between BCC and noninvolved skin with high accuracy. This is a crucial step in the development of clinical dermatological applications based on fiber optic Raman spectroscopy.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study

MeSH terms

  • Carcinoma, Basal Cell / diagnosis*
  • Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted / methods*
  • Discriminant Analysis
  • Humans
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Skin / pathology*
  • Skin Neoplasms / diagnosis*
  • Spectrum Analysis, Raman / methods*