Researchers supported by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research reported their initial success using a customized optical device that allows dentists to visualize in a completely new way whether a patient might have a developing oral cancer. Called a Visually Enhanced Lesion Scope (VELscope), this simple, hand-held device emits a cone of blue light into the mouth that excites various molecules within cells, causing them to absorb the light energy and re-emit it as visible fluorescence. Remove the light, and the fluorescence of the tissue is no longer visible. Because changes in the natural fluorescence of healthy tissue generally reflect light-scattering biochemical or structural changes indicative of developing tumor cells, the VELscope allows dentists to shine a light onto a suspicious sore in the mouth, look through an attached eyepiece, and watch directly for changes in color. Normal oral tissue emits a pale green fluorescence, while potentially early tumor, or dysplastic, cells appear dark green to black. Testing the device in 44 people, the results of which are published online in the Journal of Biomedical Optics, the scientists found they could distinguish correctly in all but one instance between normal and abnormal tissue. Their diagnoses were confirmed to be correct by biopsy and standard pathology.
(Source: NIH News, National Institutes of Health, April 10, 2006)
