# Same-day Breast Pathology Results using Open-Top Light-Sheet Microscopy for Image-guided Core Needle Biopsies

> **NIH NIH R41** · ALPENGLOW BIOSCIENCES, INC. · 2021 · $398,305

## Abstract

Abstract (300 words maximum)
Each year, over 700 women undergo an image-guided core needle biopsy (CNB) to evaluate a
suspicious breast finding at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, with only about 30% biopsies
yielding malignancy. Typical turnaround time for determination of the presence or absence of
cancer from CNBs is three to five business days, and this waiting time can lead to avoidable
anxiety and delays in management. Our team has pioneered the use of open-top light-sheet
microscopy (OTLS), which is a slide-free fluorescence imaging technique that enables rapid,
large area scanning of fresh tissue. A preliminary study using excised 1 cm2 pieces of fresh
breast tissue showed that OTLS imaging can provide diagnostic quality images in under 10
minutes. We hypothesize that OTLS evaluation of CNB breast tissue specimens will
provide an accurate determination of malignancy vs. no malignancy within 30 minutes of
obtaining breast core specimens. We will test this hypothesis by optimizing evaluation of
CNB samples with OTLS using breast cancers that have been excised surgically and then
testing its accuracy in a small clinical trial of 40 women. If successful, our approach could allow
women with concerning breast imaging findings to have a complete imaging and pathology
workup in the same day, leading to reassurance in the majority of women and earlier triage to
appropriate care in those with breast cancer. Furthermore, wider application of this technology
could allow for more accurate whole-specimen evaluation of biomarkers of disease, such as
quantification of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes, and more elegant radiology-pathology correlation
studies that could advance the emerging fields of radiomics and pathomics.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10253425
- **Project number:** 1R41CA261263-01
- **Recipient organization:** ALPENGLOW BIOSCIENCES, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Nicholas Reder
- **Activity code:** R41 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $398,305
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-07-01 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10253425

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10253425, Same-day Breast Pathology Results using Open-Top Light-Sheet Microscopy for Image-guided Core Needle Biopsies (1R41CA261263-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-28 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10253425. Licensed CC0.

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