Distinguishing Cancer cells from healthy ones is nearly impossible during surgery, and is one of the*primary reasons why tumor resections with the narrow margins often fail to stop the Cancer from spreading. Cancer cells look and feel almost identical to **rmal tissue, so k**wing how far to cut is often a hit-or-miss proposition. A new tech**logy based on a*na**-tech**logical contrast media is allowing surgeons at*Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center to see the Cancer cells glowing bright green.
Developed by scientists at Cornell University, the system uses a Fluorescence Camera from Quest Medical Imaging (Middenmeer, The Netherlands) to*activate so called “C dots” (Cornell dots) that can be used as an injectable marker to pinpoint Cancer cells. The Camera illuminates the scene while picking up the*near-infrared fluorescent signal coming from the C Dots that it superimposes on a live video screen.
Here’s a video from Sloan Kettering showing off how the tech**logy functions and demonstrating it in an actual surgical case: