While some of these tools have helped to guide therapy in patients with prostate cancer, they are imperfect and as a result many men undergo unnecessary treatment for a disease that would not have caused their deaths. An improved method to risk stratify men with prostate cancer prior to definitive therapy may reduce the over-treatment rate, while maintaining or improving mortality.
Diffuse optical tomography (DOT) is a novel imaging modality that uses low-intensity, near-infrared light to characterize tissue. DOT analyzes the light being reflected and transmitted through tissue to generate three-dimensional images of chromophores and light scattering. As such, DOT serves as a functional imaging modality, measuring both tissue vascularity and architecture. The investigators believe that DOT will be able to detect prostate cancer in men suspected of the disease and will also be able to risk-stratify patients found to have prostate cancer to help guide treatment options. DOT may be able to directly measure two factors important in the prognosis of patients with prostate cancer: the Gleason score and microvessel density (MVD).
