Raman and FTIR spectroscopy in melanoma
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Comparison of normal and melanoma tissue samples by FTIR and Raman Spectroscopy
IRAS ID
183744
Contact name
Nicola H Green
Contact email
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
12179, Human Tissue Authority Licence
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
If a patient has a skin lesion that may be malignant, the standard procedure is to remove a small sample from the growth or sore for analysis in the laboratory. Once it is known whether the lesion is benign or malignant, the appropriate treatment can begin. However, this process may result in delays and unnecessary stress for the patient, and in addition the removal of the tissue biopsy can cause scarring. A way to examine the lesion while still on the patient and get a result immediately could be beneficial.
Spectroscopic techniques show potential in this area, as they allow the skin to be examined non-invasively by placing a probe against the skin and collecting signals from the underlying tissue. Two spectroscopic methods have already being shown to be effective in studying normal skin tissue. In this case clear differences have been observed in the signals generated from the different skin layers. Furthermore, additional work has shown that changes to these signals are observed when looking at experimental models of melanoma in the laboratory, where we can detect differences between malignant and normal tissue. However these experiments have relied upon examples of melanoma grown in the laboratory and the results also need to be verified on real patient samples. The aim of this project is to use two spectroscopic techniques to examine tissue samples of melanoma biopsies and benign moles, to compare the data from the two techniques, to compare results from benign and malignant samples and evaluate the data obtained in comparison with the experimental melanoma models. This study will provide additional information regarding the reproducibility and reliability of signals detected from benign and malignant samples, and allow us to better understand whether the techniques have the potential to be used in the clinical diagnosis of skin lesions.REC name
Yorkshire & The Humber - Bradford Leeds Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/YH/0417
Date of REC Opinion
4 Sep 2015
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion