Method and System for Enhanced Fluorescence Tissue and Cancer Margin Imaging

A method of analyzing a tissue, comprising:

• administering a fluorescent agent to a tissue;
• producing a first excitation light centered on a first wavelength, wherein the first excitation light is configured to produce a fluorescence emission from the fluorescent agent administered to the tissue;
• producing a second excitation light centered on a second wavelength, wherein the second excitation light is configured to produce a first autofluorescence emission from one or more biomolecules of interest present within the tissue;
• using a photodetector to detect the fluorescence emission and produce first signals representative of the fluorescence emission;
• using the photodetector to detect the first autofluorescence emission, and produce second signals representative of the first autofluorescence emission;
• producing an image using the first signals and the second signals, wherein the image includes a first portion representative of a first type of tissue present within the tissue, a second portion representative of a second type of tissue present within the tissue, and a third portion representative of a diseased tissue present within the tissue;
• and
• analyzing the tissue using the image to identify a presence of the diseased tissue and to distinguish the diseased tissue from the first type of tissue and the second type of tissue.

A method of imaging a tissue, comprising:

• administering a fluorescent agent to a tissue;
• producing a first excitation light centered on a first wavelength, wherein the first excitation light is configured to produce a fluorescence emission from the fluorescent agent administered to the tissue;
• producing a second excitation light centered on a second wavelength, wherein the second excitation light is configured to produce an autofluorescence emission from one or more biomolecules of interest present within the tissue;
• using a photodetector to detect the fluorescence emission and produce first signals representative of the fluorescence emission;
• using the photodetector to detect the autofluorescence emission, and produce second signals representative of the autofluorescence emission;
• producing an image of the tissue using the first signals and the second signals, wherein the image includes a first portion representative of a first type of tissue present within the tissue, a second portion representative of a second type of tissue present within the tissue, and a third portion representative of a diseased tissue present within the tissue, and distinguishing the third portion for the first portion and the second portion so that a boundary of the third portion is determinable from the first portion and the second portion.