Browsing by Author "Schwarz, Richard A."
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Item Accuracy of In Vivo Multimodal Optical Imaging for Detection of Oral Neoplasia(AACR, 2012) Pierce, Mark C.; Schwarz, Richard A.; Bhattar, Vijayashree S.; Mondrik, Sharon; Williams, Michelle D.; Lee, J. Jack; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca; Gillenwater, Ann M.If detected early, oral cancer is eminently curable. However, survival rates for oral cancer patients remain low, largely due to late-stage diagnosis and subsequent difficulty of treatment. To improve cliniciansﾒ ability to detect early disease and to treat advanced cancers, we developed a multimodal optical imaging system (MMIS) to evaluate tissue in situ, at macroscopic and microscopic scales. The MMIS was used to measure 100 anatomic sites in 30 patients, correctly classifying 98% of pathologically confirmed normal tissue sites, and 95% of sites graded as moderate dysplasia, severe dysplasia, or cancer. When used alone, MMIS classification accuracy was 35% for sites determined by pathology as mild dysplasia. However, MMIS measurements correlated with expression of candidate molecular markers in 87% of sites with mild dysplasia. These findings support the ability of noninvasive multimodal optical imaging to accurately identify neoplastic tissue and premalignant lesions. This in turn may have considerable impact on detection and treatment of patients with oral cancer and other epithelial malignancies.Item Algorithm to quantify nuclear features and confidence intervals for classification of oral neoplasia from high-resolution optical images(SPIE, 2020) Yang, Eric C.; Brenes, David R.; Vohra, Imran S.; Schwarz, Richard A.; Williams, Michelle D.; Vigneswaran, Nadarajah; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.Purpose:In vivo optical imaging technologies like high-resolution microendoscopy (HRME) can image nuclei of the oral epithelium. In principle, automated algorithms can then calculate nuclear features to distinguish neoplastic from benign tissue. However, images frequently contain regions without visible nuclei, due to biological and technical factors, decreasing the data available to and accuracy of image analysis algorithms. Approach: We developed the nuclear density-confidence interval (ND-CI) algorithm to determine if an HRME image contains sufficient nuclei for classification, or if a better image is required. The algorithm uses a convolutional neural network to exclude image regions without visible nuclei. Then the remaining regions are used to estimate a confidence interval (CI) for the number of abnormal nuclei per mm2, a feature used by a previously developed algorithm (called the ND algorithm), to classify images as benign or neoplastic. The range of the CI determines whether the ND-CI algorithm can classify an image with confidence, and if so, the predicted category. The ND and ND-CI algorithm were compared by calculating their positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) on 82 oral biopsies with histopathologically confirmed diagnoses. Results: After excluding the images that could not be classified with confidence, the ND-CI algorithm had higher PPV (65% versus 59%) and NPV (78% versus 75%) than the ND algorithm. Conclusions: The ND-CI algorithm could improve the real-time classification of HRME images of the oral epithelium by informing the user if an improved image is required for diagnosis.Item Automated frame selection process for high-resolution microendoscopy(SPIE, 2015) Ishijima, Ayumu; Schwarz, Richard A.; Shin, Dongsuk; Mondrik, Sharon; Vigneswaran, Nadarajah; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Anandasabapathy, Sharmila; Richards-Kortum, RebeccaWe developed an automated frame selection algorithm for high-resolution microendoscopy video sequences. The algorithm rapidly selects a representative frame with minimal motion artifact from a short video sequence, enabling fully automated image analysis at the point-of-care. The algorithm was evaluated by quantitative comparison of diagnostically relevant image features and diagnostic classification results obtained using automated frame selection versus manual frame selection. A data set consisting of video sequences collected in vivo from 100 oral sites and 167 esophageal sites was used in the analysis. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.78 (automated selection) versus 0.82 (manual selection) for oral sites, and 0.93 (automated selection) versus 0.92 (manual selection) for esophageal sites. The implementation of fully automated high-resolution microendoscopy at the point-of-care has the potential to reduce the number of biopsies needed for accurate diagnosis of precancer and cancer in low-resource settings where there may be limited infrastructure and personnel for standard histologic analysis.Item Design and Evaluation of ScanCap: A Low-Cost, Reusable Tethered Capsule Endoscope with Blue-Green Illumination Imaging for Unsedated Screening and Early Detection of Barrett’s Esophagus(MDPI, 2024) Hicheri, Cheima; Azimuddin, Ahad M.; Kortum, Alex; Bailey, Joseph; Tang, Yubo; Schwarz, Richard A.; Rosen, Daniel; Jain, Shilpa; Mansour, Nabil M.; Groth, Shawn; Vasavada, Shaleen; Rao, Ashwin; Maliga, Adrianna; Gallego, Leslie; Carns, Jennifer; Anandasabapathy, Sharmila; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca; Rice360 Institute for Global Health TechnologiesEsophageal carcinoma is the sixth-leading cause of cancer death worldwide. A precursor to esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) is Barrett’s Esophagus (BE). Early-stage diagnosis and treatment of esophageal neoplasia (Barrett’s with high-grade dysplasia/intramucosal cancer) increase the five-year survival rate from 10% to 98%. BE is a global challenge; however, current endoscopes for early BE detection are costly and require extensive infrastructure for patient examination and sedation. We describe the design and evaluation of the first prototype of ScanCap, a high-resolution optical endoscopy system with a reusable, low-cost tethered capsule, designed to provide high-definition, blue-green illumination imaging for the early detection of BE in unsedated patients. The tethered capsule (12.8 mm diameter, 35.5 mm length) contains a color camera and rotating mirror and is designed to be swallowed; images are collected as the capsule is retracted manually via the tether. The tether provides electrical power and illumination at wavelengths of 415 nm and 565 nm and transmits data from the camera to a tablet. The ScanCap prototype capsule was used to image the oral mucosa in normal volunteers and ex vivo esophageal resections; images were compared to those obtained using an Olympus CV-180 endoscope. Images of superficial capillaries in intact oral mucosa were clearly visible in ScanCap images. Diagnostically relevant features of BE, including irregular Z-lines, distorted mucosa, and dilated vasculature, were clearly visible in ScanCap images of ex vivo esophageal specimens.Item Development of a multimodal mobile colposcope for real-time cervical cancer detection(Optica Publishing Group, 2022) Coole, Jackson B.; Brenes, David; Possati-Resende, Júlio César; Antoniazzi, Márcio; Fonseca, Bruno de Oliveira; Maker, Yajur; Kortum, Alex; Vohra, Imran S.; Schwarz, Richard A.; Carns, Jennifer; Souza, Karen Cristina Borba; Santana, Iara Viana Vidigal; Kreitchmann, Regis; Salcedo, Mila P.; Salcedo, Mila P.; Ramanujam, Nirmala; Schmeler, Kathleen M.; Richards-Kortum, RebeccaCervical cancer remains a leading cause of cancer death among women in low-and middle-income countries. Globally, cervical cancer prevention programs are hampered by a lack of resources, infrastructure, and personnel. We describe a multimodal mobile colposcope (MMC) designed to diagnose precancerous cervical lesions at the point-of-care without the need for biopsy. The MMC integrates two complementary imaging systems: 1) a commercially available colposcope and 2) a high speed, high-resolution, fiber-optic microendoscope (HRME). Combining these two image modalities allows, for the first time, the ability to locate suspicious cervical lesions using widefield imaging and then to obtain co-registered high-resolution images across an entire lesion. The MMC overcomes limitations of high-resolution imaging alone; widefield imaging can be used to guide the placement of the high-resolution imaging probe at clinically suspicious regions and co-registered, mosaicked high-resolution images effectively increase the field of view of high-resolution imaging. Representative data collected from patients referred for colposcopy at Barretos Cancer Hospital in Brazil, including 22,800 high resolution images and 9,900 colposcope images, illustrate the ability of the MMC to identify abnormal cervical regions, image suspicious areas with subcellular resolution, and distinguish between high-grade and low-grade dysplasia.Item Development of an integrated multimodal optical imaging system with real-time image analysis for the evaluation of oral premalignant lesions(SPIE, 2019) Yang, Eric C.; Vohra, Imran S.; Badaoui, Hawraa; Schwarz, Richard A.; Cherry, Katelin D.; Quang, Timothy; Jacob, Justin; Lang, Alex; Bass, Nancy; Rodriguez, Jessica; Williams, Michelle D.; Vigneswaran, Nadarajah; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.Oral premalignant lesions (OPLs), such as leukoplakia, are at risk of malignant transformation to oral cancer. Clinicians can elect to biopsy OPLs and assess them for dysplasia, a marker of increased risk. However, it is challenging to decide which OPLs need a biopsy and to select a biopsy site. We developed a multimodal optical imaging system (MMIS) that fully integrates the acquisition, display, and analysis of macroscopic white-light (WL), autofluorescence (AF), and high-resolution microendoscopy (HRME) images to noninvasively evaluate OPLs. WL and AF images identify suspicious regions with high sensitivity, which are explored at higher resolution with the HRME to improve specificity. Key features include a heat map that delineates suspicious regions according to AF images, and real-time image analysis algorithms that predict pathologic diagnosis at imaged sites. Representative examples from ongoing studies of the MMIS demonstrate its ability to identify high-grade dysplasia in OPLs that are not clinically suspicious, and to avoid unnecessary biopsies of benign OPLs that are clinically suspicious. The MMIS successfully integrates optical imaging approaches (WL, AF, and HRME) at multiple scales for the noninvasive evaluation of OPLs.Item In Vivo Multimodal Optical Imaging: Improved Detection of Oral Dysplasia in Low-Risk Oral Mucosal Lesions(AACR, 2018) Yang, Eric C.; Schwarz, Richard A.; Lang, Alexander K.; Bass, Nancy; Badaoui, Hawraa; Vohra, Imran S.; Cherry, Katelin D.; Williams, Michelle D.; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Vigneswaran, Nadarajah; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.Early detection of oral cancer and oral premalignant lesions (OPL) containing dysplasia could improve oral cancer outcomes. However, general dental practitioners have difficulty distinguishing dysplastic OPLs from confounder oral mucosal lesions in low-risk populations. We evaluated the ability of two optical imaging technologies, autofluorescence imaging (AFI) and high-resolution microendoscopy (HRME), to diagnose moderate dysplasia or worse (ModDys+) in 56 oral mucosal lesions in a low-risk patient population, using histopathology as the gold standard, and in 46 clinically normal sites. AFI correctly diagnosed 91% of ModDys+ lesions, 89% of clinically normal sites, and 33% of benign lesions. Benign lesions with severe inflammation were less likely to be correctly diagnosed by AFI (13%) than those without (42%). Multimodal imaging (AFI+HRME) had higher accuracy than either modality alone; 91% of ModDys+ lesions, 93% of clinically normal sites, and 64% of benign lesions were correctly diagnosed. Photos of the 56 lesions were evaluated by 28 dentists of varied training levels, including 26 dental residents. We compared the area under the receiver operator curve (AUC) of clinical impression alone to clinical impression plus AFI and clinical impression plus multimodal imaging using k-Nearest Neighbors models. The mean AUC of the dental residents was 0.71 (range: 0.45–0.86). The addition of AFI alone to clinical impression slightly lowered the mean AUC (0.68; range: 0.40–0.82), whereas the addition of multimodal imaging to clinical impression increased the mean AUC (0.79; range: 0.61–0.90). On the basis of these findings, multimodal imaging could improve the evaluation of oral mucosal lesions in community dental settings.Item Is Proflavine Exposure Associated with Disease Progression in Women with Cervical Dysplasia? A Brief Report(Wiley, 2018) Pantano, Naitielle; Hunt, Brady; Schwarz, Richard A.; Parra, Sonia; Cherry, Katelin; Possati‐Resende, Júlio César; Longatto‐Filho, Adhemar; Fregnani, José Humberto Tavares Guerreiro; Castle, Philip E.; Schmeler, Kathleen; Richards‐Kortum, RebeccaProflavine is an acridine dye used with high-resolution microendoscopy for in vivo diagnostic evaluation of cervical epithelial cells. However, there are concerns that even short-term exposure of cervical tissue to dilute proflavine may increase cervical cancer risk. We performed a retrospective analysis of women referred for colposcopy to Barretos Cancer Hospital comparing the risk of cervical disease progression in those whose cervical tissue was (n = 232) or was not exposed (n = 160) to proflavine. Patients in both groups underwent treatment and follow-up based on histopathologic results and per the local standards of care. Progression of disease was evaluated by comparing histopathology from the initial visit to the worst subsequent histopathology result from all follow-up visits. Mean duration of follow-up was 18.7 and 20.1 months for the proflavine-exposed and controls groups, respectively. There were no significant differences in disease progression from normal/CIN1 to CIN2/3 or from any initial diagnosis to invasive cancer between the proflavine exposed and control groups overall. Risks of cervical dysplasia progression observed in this study are in agreement with those of the natural history of cervical cancer. Our results suggest that cervical exposure to dilute proflavine does not increase the risk of cervical precancer and cancer.Item Low-Cost High-Resolution Microendoscopy for the Detection of Esophageal Squamous Cell Neoplasia: An International Trial(Elsevier, 2015) Protano, Marion-Anna; Xu, Hong; Wang, Guiqi; Polydorides, Alexandros D.; Dawsey, Sanford M.; Cui, Junsheng; Xue, Liyan; Zhang, Fan; Quang, Timothy; Pierce, Mark C.; Shin, Dongsuk; Schwarz, Richard A.; Bhutani, Manoop S.; Lee, Michelle; Parikh, Neil; Hur, Chin; Xu, Weiran; Moshier, Erin; Godbold, James; Mitcham, Josephine; Hudson, Courtney; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.; Anandasabapathy, SharmilaBackground & Aims: Esophageal squamous cell neoplasia has a high mortality rate as a result of late detection. In high-risk regions such as China, screening is performed by Lugol’s chromoendoscopy (LCE). LCE has low specificity, resulting in unnecessary tissue biopsy with a subsequent increase in procedure cost and risk. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of a novel, low-cost, high-resolution microendoscope (HRME) as an adjunct to LCE. Methods: In this prospective trial, 147 consecutive high-risk patients were enrolled from 2 US and 2 Chinese tertiary centers. Three expert and 4 novice endoscopists performed white-light endoscopy followed by LCE and HRME. All optical images were compared with the gold standard of histopathology. Results: By using a per-biopsy analysis, the sensitivity of LCE vs LCE + HRME was 96% vs 91% (P = .0832), specificity was 48% vs 88% (P < .001), positive predictive value was 22% vs 45% (P < .0001), negative predictive value was 98% vs 98% (P = .3551), and overall accuracy was 57% vs 90% (P < .001), respectively. By using a per-patient analysis, the sensitivity of LCE vs LCE + HRME was 100% vs 95% (P = .16), specificity was 29% vs 79% (P < .001), positive predictive value was 32% vs 60%, 100% vs 98%, and accuracy was 47% vs 83% (P < .001). With the use of HRME, 136 biopsies (60%; 95% confidence interval, 53%–66%) could have been spared, and 55 patients (48%; 95% confidence interval, 38%–57%) could have been spared any biopsy. Conclusions: In this trial, HRME improved the accuracy of LCE for esophageal squamous cell neoplasia screening and surveillance. HRME may be a cost-effective optical biopsy adjunct to LCE, potentially reducing unnecessary biopsies and facilitating real-time decision making in globally underserved regions. ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT 01384708.Item Low-cost, high-resolution imaging for detecting cervical precancer in medically-underserved areas of Texas(Elsevier, 2019) Parra, Sonia G.; Rodriguez, Ana M.; Cherry, Katelin D.; Schwarz, Richard A.; Gowen, Rose M.; Guerra, Laura B.; Milbourne, Andrea M.; Toscano, Paul A.; Fisher-Hoch, Susan P.; Schmeler, Kathleen M.; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.Objective: Cervical cancer rates in the United States have declined since the 1940's, however, cervical cancer incidence remains elevated in medically-underserved areas, especially in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) along the Texas-Mexico border. High-resolution microendoscopy (HRME) is a low-cost, in vivo imaging technique that can identify high-grade precancerous cervical lesions (CIN2+) at the point-of-care. The goal of this study was to evaluate the performance of HRME in medically-underserved areas in Texas, comparing results to a tertiary academic medical center. Methods: HRME was evaluated in five different outpatient clinical settings, two in Houston and three in the RGV, with medical providers of varying skill and training. Colposcopy, followed by HRME imaging, was performed on eligible women. The sensitivity and specificity of traditional colposcopy and colposcopy followed by HRME to detect CIN2+ were compared and HRME image quality was evaluated. Results: 174 women (227 cervical sites) were included in the final analysis, with 12% (11% of cervical sites) diagnosed with CIN2+ on histopathology. On a per-site basis, a colposcopic impression of low-grade precancer or greater had a sensitivity of 84% and a specificity of 45% to detect CIN2+. While there was no significant difference in sensitivity (76%, p = 0.62), the specificity when using HRME was significantly higher than that of traditional colposcopy (56%, p = 0.01). There was no significant difference in HRME image quality between clinical sites (p = 0.77) or medical providers (p = 0.33). Conclusions: HRME imaging increased the specificity for detecting CIN2+ when compared to traditional colposcopy. HRME image quality remained consistent across different clinical settings.Item Mildly dysplastic oral lesions with optically-detectable abnormalities share genetic similarities with severely dysplastic lesions(Elsevier, 2022) Brenes, David R.; Nipper, Allison J.; Tan, Melody T.; Gleber-Netto, Frederico O.; Schwarz, Richard A.; Pickering, Curtis R.; Williams, Michelle D.; Vigneswaran, Nadarajah; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Sikora, Andrew G.; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.Objective Optical imaging studies of oral premalignant lesions have shown that optical markers, including loss of autofluorescence and altered morphology of epithelial cell nuclei, are predictive of high-grade pathology. While these optical markers are consistently positive in lesions with moderate/severe dysplasia or cancer, they are positive only in a subset of lesions with mild dysplasia. This study compared the gene expression profiles of lesions with mild dysplasia (stratified by optical marker status) to lesions with severe dysplasia and without dysplasia. Materials and methods Forty oral lesions imaged in patients undergoing oral surgery were analyzed: nine without dysplasia, nine with severe dysplasia, and 22 with mild dysplasia. Samples were submitted for high throughput gene expression analysis. Results The analysis revealed 116 genes differentially expressed among sites without dysplasia and sites with severe dysplasia; 50 were correlated with an optical marker quantifying altered nuclear morphology. Ten of 11 sites with mild dysplasia and positive optical markers (91%) had gene expression similar to sites with severe dysplasia. Nine of 11 sites with mild dysplasia and negative optical markers (82%) had similar gene expression as sites without dysplasia. Conclusion This study suggests that optical imaging may help identify patients with mild dysplasia who require more intensive clinical follow-up. If validated, this would represent a significant advance in patient care for patients with oral premalignant lesions.Item Multimodal optical imaging with real-time projection of cancer risk and biopsy guidance maps for early oral cancer diagnosis and treatment(SPIE, 2023) Coole, Jackson B.; Brenes, David R.; Mitbander, Ruchika; Vohra, Imran S.; Hou, Huayu; Kortum, Alex; Tang, Yubo; Maker, Yajur; Schwarz, Richard A.; Carns, Jennifer L.; Badaoui, Hawraa; Williams, Michelle D.; Vigneswaran, Nadarajah; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Richards-Kortum, RebeccaSignificance: Despite recent advances in multimodal optical imaging, oral imaging systems often do not provide real-time actionable guidance to the clinician who is making biopsy and treatment decisions. Aim: We demonstrate a low-cost, portable active biopsy guidance system (ABGS) that uses multimodal optical imaging with deep learning to directly project cancer risk and biopsy guidance maps onto oral mucosa in real time. Approach: Cancer risk maps are generated based on widefield autofluorescence images and projected onto the at-risk tissue using a digital light projector. Microendoscopy images are obtained from at-risk areas, and multimodal image data are used to calculate a biopsy guidance map, which is projected onto tissue.ResultsRepresentative patient examples highlight clinically actionable visualizations provided in real time during an imaging procedure. Results show multimodal imaging with cancer risk and biopsy guidance map projection offers a versatile, quantitative, and precise tool to guide biopsy site selection and improve early detection of oral cancers. Conclusions: The ABGS provides direct visible guidance to identify early lesions and locate appropriate sites to biopsy within those lesions. This represents an opportunity to translate multimodal imaging into real-time clinically actionable visualizations to help improve patient outcomes.Item Multimodal snapshot spectral imaging for oral cancer diagnostics: a pilot study(Optical Society of America, 2013) Bedard, Noah; Schwarz, Richard A.; Hu, Aaron; Bhattar, Vijayashree; Howe, Jana; Williams, Michelle D.; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca; Tkaczyk, Tomasz S.Optical imaging and spectroscopy have emerged as effective tools for detecting malignant changes associated with oral cancer. While clinical studies have demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity for detection, current devices either interrogate a small region or can have reduced performance for some benign lesions. We describe a snapshot imaging spectrometer that combines the large field-of-view of widefield imaging with the diagnostic strength of spectroscopy. The portable device can stream RGB images at 7.2 frames per second and record both autofluorescence and reflectance spectral datacubes in < 1 second. We report initial data from normal volunteers and oral cancer patients.Item Noninvasive diagnostic adjuncts for the evaluation of potentially premalignant oral epithelial lesions: current limitations and future directions(Elsevier, 2018) Yang, Eric C.; Tan, Melody T.; Schwarz, Richard A.; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Vigneswaran, NadarajahPotentially premalignant oral epithelial lesions (PPOELs) are a group of clinically suspicious conditions, of which a small percentage will undergo malignant transformation. PPOELs are suboptimally diagnosed and managed under the current standard of care. Dysplasia is the most well-established marker to distinguish high-risk PPOELs from low-risk PPOELs, and performing a biopsy to establish dysplasia is the diagnostic gold standard. However, a biopsy is limited by morbidity, resource requirements, and the potential for underdiagnosis. Diagnostic adjuncts may help clinicians better evaluate PPOELs before definitive biopsy, but existing adjuncts, such as toluidine blue, acetowhitening, and autofluorescence imaging, have poor accuracy and are not generally recommended. Recently, in vivo microscopy technologies, such as high-resolution microendoscopy, optical coherence tomography, reflectance confocal microscopy, and multiphoton imaging, have shown promise for improving PPOEL patient care. These technologies allow clinicians to visualize many of the same microscopic features used for histopathologic assessment at the point of care.Item Optical imaging technologies for in vivo cancer detection in low-resource settings(Elsevier, 2023) Hou, Huayu; Mitbander, Ruchika; Tang, Yubo; Azimuddin, Ahad; Carns, Jennifer; Schwarz, Richard A.; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.Cancer continues to affect underserved populations disproportionately. Novel optical imaging technologies, which can provide rapid, non-invasive, and accurate cancer detection at the point of care, have great potential to improve global cancer care. This article reviews the recent technical innovations and clinical translation of low-cost optical imaging technologies, highlighting the advances in both hardware and software, especially the integration of artificial intelligence, to improve in vivo cancer detection in low-resource settings. Additionally, this article provides an overview of existing challenges and future perspectives of adapting optical imaging technologies into clinical practice, which can potentially contribute to novel insights and programs that effectively improve cancer detection in low-resource settings.Item Quantitative Analysis of High-Resolution Microendoscopic Images for Diagnosis of Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinomaﾠ(Elsevier, 2015) Shin, Dongsuk; Protano, Marion-Anna; Polydorides, Alexandros D.; Dawsey, Sanford M.; Pierce, Mark C.; Kim, Michelle Kang; Schwarz, Richard A.; Quang, Timothy; Parikh, Neil; Bhutani, Manoop S.; Zhang, Fan; Wang, Guiqi; Xue, Liyan; Wang, Xueshan; Xu, Hong; Anandasabapathy, Sharmila; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.Background & Aims: High-resolution microendoscopy is an optical imaging technique with the potential to improve the accuracy of endoscopic screening for esophageal squamous neoplasia. Although these microscopic images can be interpreted readily by trained personnel, quantitative image analysis software could facilitate the use of this technology in low-resource settings. In this study, we developed and evaluated quantitative image analysis criteria for the evaluation of neoplastic and non-neoplastic squamous esophageal mucosa. Methods: We performed an image analysis of 177 patients undergoing standard upper endoscopy for screening or surveillance of esophageal squamous neoplasia, using high-resolution microendoscopy, at 2 hospitals in China and at 1 hospital in the United States from May 2010 to October 2012. Biopsy specimens were collected from imaged sites (n = 375), and a consensus diagnosis was provided by 2 expert gastrointestinal pathologists and used as the standard. Results: Quantitative information from the high-resolution images was used to develop an algorithm to identify high-grade squamous dysplasia or invasive squamous cell cancer, based on histopathology findings. Optimal performance was obtained using the mean nuclear area as the basis for classification, resulting in sensitivities and specificities of 93% and 92% in the training set, 87% and 97% in the test set, and 84% and 95% in an independent validation set, respectively. Conclusions: High-resolution microendoscopy with quantitative image analysis can aid in the identification of esophageal squamous neoplasia. Use of software-based image guides may overcome issues of training and expertise in low-resource settings, allowing for widespread use of these optical biopsy technologies.Item Use of topical methylene blue to image nuclear morphometry with a low-cost scanning darkfield microendoscope(SPIE, 2024) Hou, Huayu; Carns, Jennifer; Schwarz, Richard A.; Gillenwater, Ann M.; Anandasabapathy, Sharmila; Richards-Kortum, Rebecca R.SignificanceFiber-optic microendoscopy is a promising approach to noninvasively visualize epithelial nuclear morphometry for early cancer and precancer detection. However, the broader clinical application of this approach is limited by a lack of topical contrast agents available for in vivo use.AimThe aim of this study was to evaluate the ability to image nuclear morphometry in vivo with a novel fiber-optic microendoscope used together with topical application of methylene blue (MB), a dye with FDA approval for use in chromoendoscopy in the gastrointestinal tract.ApproachThe low-cost, high-resolution microendoscope implements scanning darkfield imaging without complex optomechanical components by leveraging programmable illumination and the rolling shutter of the image sensor. We validate the integration of our system and MB staining for visualizing epithelial cell nuclei by performing ex vivo imaging on fresh animal specimens and in vivo imaging on healthy volunteers.ResultsThe results indicate that scanning darkfield imaging significantly reduces specular reflection and resolves epithelial nuclei with enhanced image contrast and spatial resolution compared to non-scanning widefield imaging. The image quality of darkfield images with MB staining is comparable to that of fluorescence images with proflavine staining.ConclusionsOur approach enables real-time microscopic evaluation of nuclear patterns and has the potential to be a powerful noninvasive tool for early cancer detection.