Identification of blood vessel invasion in breast tumor microenvironment by multiphoton microscopy

摘要

The presence of blood vessel invasion (BVI) in breast tumor microenvironment has been recognized as an unfavorable prognostic factor. Invasion of cancer cells into vessels is one of the critical steps for metastasis. Therefore, visualization of BVI is vital for comprehending the progress of tumor. Multiphoton microscopy (MPM) based on second harmonic generation (SHG) and two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) can monitor morphological changes in biological tissues. In this study, we found significant differences in morphology between normal breast blood vessel and abnormal blood vessel encountered with tumor invasion using label-free MPM. Our study demonstrated that MPM has the ability to not only identify BVI in breast tumor environment but also reveal the morphological changes of breast blood vessel. By-comparing with the hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained image, it was confirmed that MPM provides a new assistant tool for pathologists to identify BVI effectively.