The main goal of this thesis is to provide a solid foundation for further development of Raman spectroscopic applications in head and neck oncology. This is a multistep process in which we want to investigate and understand the Raman spectroscopic features that distinguish the epithelial (keratinocytic) component of a tongue OCSCC from its surrounding tissue (referred to as non-tumorous or healthy tissue).

First, we aimed to develop a standardized method to collect and analyze detailed Raman spectral information of OCSCC and the individual non-tumorous tissue structures in the tongue, as described in Chapter 2. Next, the potential of Raman spectroscopy to distinguish between the characteristic Raman features of OCSCC and the individual non-tumorous tissue structures is investigated in Chapter 3. In Chapter 4, these results are used for the development of a ‘tumor’ versus ‘non-tumorous tissue’ classification model. Lastly, in Chapter 5 the Raman spectra of OCSCC and individual non-tumorous tissue structures are analyzed in terms of the quantitative information they contain about the tissue’s molecular composition. In Chapter 6 an overview is given of the pure-compound reference spectra used for this analysis.
To conclude, in this thesis the strengths and limitations of Raman spectroscopy, regarding its OCSCCdetecting potential in tongue, are elucidated.