Laser-Based Imaging May Help Match Chemotherapy to Individual Tumors
A Purdue University physicist is developing a biodynamic imaging platform that combines laser light, the Doppler effect, and AI to assess how tumor biopsies respond to different chemotherapy drugs. The system is being tested with experimental treatments for osteosarcoma using samples from more than 30 patients. The goal is to help doctors choose the most effective chemotherapy sooner for each patient.
David Nolte, a Purdue physicist, is developing a motion-sensitive imaging platform that combines lasers, the Doppler effect, and AI to see how tumor biopsies respond to chemotherapy. The method seeks to reveal drug effects quickly by detecting movement inside living cells.
A prototype is now in Karen Pollok's Indiana University School of Medicine lab. It is being tested on experimental osteosarcoma treatments using tumor cells from over 30 patients, including a line donated by Tyler Trent. AI trained on known outcomes may help predict responses from new images.
If validated, this imaging approach could help oncologists and patients choose chemotherapy with less guesswork, potentially sparing some people from ineffective treatments and delays. It may also speed early drug testing for cancers such as osteosarcoma. Benefits would depend on clinical validation, access, and cost, so its societal impact remains uncertain.