Three dimensional images of tissue samples could help spot cancer Researchers in the UK have said that three dimensional images of tissue samples could help spot cancer early. University of Leeds scientists have created a technique to generate hi-resolution, colour 3D images of a piece of tissue.
The images can be rotated on a computer screen and examined from any angle.  
A prominent cancer charity, Cancer Research UK, has said that the technology could help researchers understand how cancer grows and spreads, as well as to learn how to treat it more effectively.
The findings have been published in the American Journal of Pathology.
It is interested to note that digital microscopy is not a new phenomenon. The tissue scanning first appeared a decade ago, and soon replaced the conventional method of manually cutting ultra-thin slices of tissue one by one to then examine them under a microscope.
However these scanners, which are now used around the world, produce two-dimensional images, revealing only one cross-section of that particular piece of tissue.
According to Dr Derek Magee, one of the researchers involved in the study, there are drawbacks.  
Dr Magee, speaking to BBC News said: "The tissue is of course three-dimensional, and in a lot of applications this three-dimensional nature is important".
He added that: "For example, if you take a blood vessel, which is a branching network of tubes, and you take a slice of it, the 2D image that you get is an ellipse. This tells you absolutely nothing about the connectivity, or the specific branching, of that particular network of blood vessels, which could be particularly important for cancer specialists."
3D imaging can help provide much more reliable information than a simple 2D scan.
To create one, a piece of tissue must be cut with an ultra-precise machine called a microtome into hundreds of very thin slices.
Each slice is then put onto a 1mm-thick piece of glass and loaded into a digital scanner.
The scanner then creates 2D impressions of each cross-section, and this is where the new technology comes into play.
The software which has been developed by the Leeds University team generates a three-dimensional shape from these virtual slides, creating a realistic image that a researcher can manipulate and spin around.
Dr Magee added: "This may help spot small tumours that could be missed by conventional approaches". He added that: “if there is a major blood vessel fairly nearby, it will be possible to see if a tumour has reached it. And if it has not, you can probably cut it out very safely."
Dr Magee also stated that this is the same for organs. He mentions that if a surgeon wants to remove a tumour near a very sensitive organ, the main question is about the safety of the procedure.
Dr Kat Arney, a science information manager at Cancer Research UK said that the technology could help researchers understand more about the disease, and how to treat it more effectively.
She told the BBC that: "We're beginning to understand just how complex cancer is".
She added that: "A tumour is a complex three-dimensional 'organ' made of cancerous and healthy cells, including blood vessels, immune cells and other 'normal' cells.
Dr Arney continued by saying that: "It will be fascinating to see how this exciting new technique is taken forward by cancer researchers, and what secrets it can yield about the disease."
In the past, there have been attempts to create 3D images of tissue samples. However the images were low resolution and as a result not very detailed. They were generated after taking photos of slides on a microscope with a camera, one by one, and then assembled digitally.
But the Leeds University team said that their approach was unique as it was the first time a standard digital scanner had been used to produce high-resolution images.
Head researcher, Dr Darren Treanor said that: "Up until now, the use of 3D imaging technology to study disease has been limited because of low resolution, and the time and difficulty associated with acquiring large numbers of images with a microscope".