New Imaging Technology Shows Little Discrepancy Between Breast Cancer, Healthy Tissues

A new application has been effectively evaluated that will help surgeons better differentiate cancerous breast tissue from normal tissue, thereby decreasing the likelihood for repeat operations. The tool, called DESI (desorption electrospray ionization) mass spectrometry imaging, works by converting molecules into electrically charged versions of themselves, called ions, so that they can be identified by their mass.

Up to 40% of patients undergoing breast cancer surgery require additional operations because surgeons may fail to remove all the cancerous tissue in the initial operation. However, researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH; Boston, MA, USA) published the findings from their study online September 22, 2014, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS). By studying the mass of the ions, the contents of a tissue sample can then be identified. The tool sprays a microscopic stream of charged solvent onto the tissue surface to gather information about its molecular makeup and produces a color-coded image revealing the nature and concentration of tumor cells.

In this particular case, the researchers used DESI mass spectrometry imaging to look at the distribution and amounts of fatty acid substances, called lipids, within breast tissue and normal tissue from 61 samples obtained from 14 breast cancer patients that underwent mastectomy. A software program was used to characterize the breast cancer tumors and detect boundaries between healthy and cancerous tissue.

The researchers discovered that several fatty acids, such as oleic acid, were more abundant in breast cancer tissue compared to normal tissue. The findings were also confirmed using traditional pathology methods to assess for accuracy. “Our findings demonstrate the feasibility of classifying cancerous and normal breast tissues using DESI mass spectrometry imaging,” said Nathalie Agar, PhD, director of the surgical molecular imaging laboratory, BWH departments of neurosurgery and radiology, senior study author. “The results may help us to move forward in improving this method so that surgeons can use it to rapidly detect residual cancer tissue during breast cancer surgery, hopefully decreasing the need for multiple operations.”

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Brigham and Women’s Hospital