Thermal Camera Application in Gynecological Oncology: Feasibility Study of a Novel Technology

Background: Although thermal imaging has been tried in medical practice before, its use in gynaecological oncology is not established in practice yet. Objectives: To assesses the feasibility of thermal imaging (infrared technology) for tumour detection during gynaecological oncological surgeries, and to explore the feasibility of enhancing surgical outcomes by using thermal camera. Methods: This prospective feasibility study was conducted at a London tertiary cancer centre in the period between September 2022 and September 2023. Preoperative and intraoperative thermal images were captured using a Flir One Pro smartphone thermal camera. Subsequent images analysis was performed to correlate temperature and colour variations to tumour presence. Results: Thermal images were captured for 26 patients. Thermal imaging was able to identify malignant tumours close to abdominal wall in 73.6% of the cases, with a sensitivity of 93.3% and a positive predictive value of 77.8%. Among these, seven patients were excluded due to suboptimal imaging quality. The technique was able to map tumour locations relatively accurately. (4) Conclusion: Thermal imaging presents a promising non-invasive approach for tumour localization in gynaecological oncology. It offers significant potential to improve surgical precision and possibly patient outcomes. Thermal could serve as a valuable adjunct to conventional diagnostics in gynaecological oncology patients. Further validation by larger studies using more advanced thermal imaging is still required before we can generalize these findings in clinical practice.