Tracing molecular margins of lung cancer by internal extractive electrospray ionization mass spectrometry

Abstract

Accurate determination of lung cancer margins at the molecular level is of great significance to determine the optimal extent of resection during surgical operation and reduce the risk of postoperative recurrence. In this study, internal extractive electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (iEESI-MS) was used to trace potential molecular tumor margins in lung cancer tissue. Molecular differential model for the determination of lung cancer tumor margin was established via partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) of iEESI-MS data collected from lung tissue pieces within cancer tumor area and iEESI-MS data collected from lung tissue pieces outside cancer tumor area. Proof-of-concept data demonstrate that the developed molecular differential model yields ca. 1–2 mm wider potential molecular tumor margin of a lung cancer compared to the conventional histological analysis, showing promising potential of iEESI-MS to increase the accuracy of tumor margins determination and lower risk of lung cancer postoperative recurrence. Furthermore, our results revealed that creatine and taurine showed positive correlations with lung cancer.