Optical Systems of Biopsy: The Invisible Eye

The exploration of new methods and techniques for the diagnosis of malignant tumours has always attracted the attention of scientists. The development of adjunct tools to facilitate the non invasive screening of high risk lesions in real time has the potential to significantly improve our ability to reduce the dismal morbidity and mortality of oral cancer. Despite easy accessibility of the oral cavity to examination, there is no satisfactory method to adequately screen and detect precancers non-invasively. The current method of oral cancer diagnosis clinically relies heavily on visual examination of the oral cavity. However, discerning potentially malignant and early malignant lesions from common benign inflammatory conditions can be difficult at times. There is a need for an objective method that could provide real- time results and be routinely applied to a large population. Though science is yet to present such a perfect technique, Optical Biopsy Systems developed using knowledge of light and tissue interaction, can provide a plausible option