Data Philip Manning

The incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) is rising globally. Therefore, a reliable, tumour-specific technique is needed to guide surgical decision-making in real-time. Fluorescence-guided surgery using near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence shows promise in detecting tumours within organ systems.This paper demonstrated that the Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule (EpCAM) is selectively overexpressed by colorectal carcinoma cells. An anti-EpCAM antibody conjugated to NIR fluorophore Dylight800 showed selective EpCAM expression in human colon carcinoma cells. EpCAM surpassed other CRC markers in terms of binding kinetics and imaging studies. We are confident that our research will significantly advance the field of fluorescence-guided surgery, particularly in understanding near-infrared responsive fluorophores in defining surgical fields.