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Microfluidic microscopy-assisted label-free approach for cancer screening: automated microfluidic cytology for cancer screening

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Abstract

Each year, about 7–8 million deaths occur due to cancer around the world. More than half of the cancer-related deaths occur in the less-developed parts of the world. Cancer mortality rate can be reduced with early detection and subsequent treatment of the disease. In this paper, we introduce a microfluidic microscopy-based cost-effective and label-free approach for identification of cancerous cells. We outline a diagnostic framework for the same and detail an instrumentation layout. We have employed classical computer vision techniques such as 2D principal component analysis-based cell type representation followed by support vector machine-based classification. Analogous to criminal face recognition systems implemented with help of surveillance cameras, a signature-based approach for cancerous cell identification using microfluidic microscopy surveillance is demonstrated. Such a platform would facilitate affordable mass screening camps in the developing countries and therefore help decrease cancer mortality rate.

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Acknowledgments

Sai Siva Gorthi would like to acknowledge funding from pilot grant on cancer biology of Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Optics and Microfluidics Instrumentation Lab, Department of Instrumentation and Applied Physics, Indian Institute of Science, Malleshwaram, Bangalore, 560012, India

    Veerendra Kalyan Jagannadh & Sai Siva Gorthi

  2. Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695547, India

    G. Gopakumar & Gorthi R. K. Sai Subrahmanyam

Authors
  1. Veerendra Kalyan Jagannadh
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  2. G. Gopakumar
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  3. Gorthi R. K. Sai Subrahmanyam
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  4. Sai Siva Gorthi
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Correspondence to Sai Siva Gorthi.

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Jagannadh, V.K., Gopakumar, G., Subrahmanyam, G.R.K.S. et al. Microfluidic microscopy-assisted label-free approach for cancer screening: automated microfluidic cytology for cancer screening. Med Biol Eng Comput 55, 711–718 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11517-016-1549-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11517-016-1549-y

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