Fluorescence-Guided Surgery: A Promising Approach for Future Oncologic Surgery

Imaging is currently used for cancer detection, staging, and treatment evaluation. However, during surgery, surgeons rely mostly on visual inspection and palpation. Fluorescence imaging could provide the surgeon with necessary real-time information and could therefore revolutionize surgical oncology. This chapter gives an extensive overview of the current status of preclinical and clinical fluorescence-guided surgery. First, the basic principles of optical imaging and the specificity of fluorescence imaging will be presented. Secondly, fluorescence-guided sentinel lymph node (SLN) mapping will be discussed. The SLN is of vital importance for cancer staging and consequently influences the choice of therapy and survival rates. We will discuss preclinical and especially clinical work as many trials appraise the use of fluorescence in SLN mapping. In the final part, we will focus on specific targeting of the primary tumor by fluorescent agents that take aim of the alterations in cell physiology that denote cancer.

• View at Publisher
• View at Scopus