Optical anisotropy composition of benign and malignant prostate tissues revealed by Mueller-matrix imaging

A Mueller matrix imaging approach is employed to disclose the three-dimensional composition framework of optical anisotropy within cancerous biotissues. Visualized by the Mueller matrix technique spatial architecture of optical anisotropy of tissues is characterised by high-order statistical moments. Thus, quantitative analysis of the spatial distribution of optical anisotropy, such as linear and circular birefringence and dichroism, is revealed by using high-order statistical moments, enabling definitively discriminate prostate adenoma and carcinoma. The developed approach provides greater (> 90%) accuracy of diagnostic achieved by using either the 3-rd or 4-th order statistical moments of the linear anisotropy parameters. Noticeable difference is observed between prostate adenoma and carcinoma tissue samples in terms of the extinction coefficient and the degree of depolarisation. Juxtaposition to other optical diagnostic modalities demonstrates the greater accuracy of the approach described herein, paving the way for its wider application in cancer diagnosis and tissue characterization.

Automated summary

A Mueller matrix imaging approach is used to reveal the three-dimensional composition framework of optical anisotropy in cancerous biotissues. The spatial architecture of optical anisotropy is characterized by high-order statistical moments, enabling the quantitative analysis of the spatial distribution and discrimination of different types of cancer. Compared to other optical diagnostic modalities, this approach demonstrates higher accuracy and has the potential for wider application in cancer diagnosis and tissue characterization.