Use of Raman Spectroscopy in Characterizing Formalin-Fixed, Paraffin-Embedded Breast Tumor Samples (abstract)

Formalin‐fixed, paraffin‐embedded (FFPE) sections of breast tissue are used by pathologists to correctly type and grade the primary tumor and to assess the extent of a patient’s disease. The cut sections represent a reproducible likeness of the morphology of the tissue when viewed through a microscope, although the fixation technique creates some artifacts. What is not known is how the sections differ chemically from how the tumor would look or behave within the breast. Raman spectroscopy is, like many other optical techniques, fast, noninvasive, and generally inexpensive. The advantage Raman has over other techniques is its powerful ability to identify specific chemicals, molecules, and bonds within a sample. Using Raman spectroscopy the chemicals present in both fresh tissue and FFPE sections can be identified and compared, allowing any differences between them to be identified. This information may be useful to the pathologist as an aid to further treatment regimes or novel molecular techniques, and as an aid to patient management. If these sections are found to be chemically similar to fresh tissue, they could be used to further characterize breast tumors, particularly rare tumors, using Raman spectroscopy.