High-speed 3-D Microscope: A prospective game changer for Biopsies

Biopsies have been in medical use for more than a century’s span, but there has been no advancement in the way they are conducted. The process is still long drawn out: first the tissue is cut from the body, then embedded into a block following which it is thinly sliced and mounted on a slide to be stained with dye. It is only after a span of anywhere between 2 to 10 days from the time that pathologist has analysed the sample under a microscope that results are known. In the interim, the patient and his or her family members have to endure many an anxious moment, of mixed emotions, including fear and hope.??

Thankfully, Columbia University engineers have developed a high-speed 3D microscope that can quickly click snaps of live cells without the need to have them extracted from the body. This tech-enabled, non-invasive approach ensures that results are remarkably faster, thereby benefiting practitioners and patients alike. The Columbia team is currently working on commercialisation and FDA approval of this disruptive innovation.

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