title: FT-Raman spectroscopy for the differentiation between cutaneous melanoma and pigmented nevus.
abstract: Cutaneous melanoma is the most aggressive type of skin cancer and Ft-Raman spectroscopy has been studied as a potential method that could be a real alternative for early diagnosis of neoplasms.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To qualify the spectral FT-Raman data, in order to differentiate cutaneous melanoma and pigmented nevus.
  
  
  METHODS
  For this study, 10 samples of cutaneous melanoma, 9 samples of pigmented nevi, and 10 samples of normal skin were obtained by incisional biopsies performed during plastic surgeries ex vivo, immediately after removing the surgical sample.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The FT-Raman spectra of each group presented a high correlation between the elements of the same group, thus favoring the elaboration of spectral averages. When analyzing the spectral standard of each group, the normal skin standard did not show a significant variation between the spectra; the standard of the pigmented nevi group showed significant variation, and the cutaneous melanoma group also showed variation. Through univariate analysis, specific bands were detected for each vibrational mode identified. The discriminatory analysis of the data showed a 75.3% efficiency of the differentiation between the three groups studied.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The vibrational modes Polysaccharides, Tyrosine and Amide-I differentiated the melanoma from the pigmented nevus.
authors.affiliation: Post-Graduate Program in Plastic Surgery, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo - SP, Brazil. sidney.cartaxo@uol.com.br
authors.forename: Sidney Bandeira
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Cartaxo
authors.forename: Ivan Dunshee de Abranches Oliveira
authors.initials: ID
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.forename: Renata
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bitar
authors.forename: Andréa Fernandes
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.forename: Lydia Masako
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.forename: Herculano Silva
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Martinho
authors.forename: Airton Abrahão
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Martin
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001706:Biopsy; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000473:pathology*; D009508:Nevus, Pigmented / Q000473:pathology*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared / Q000379:methods; D013059:Spectrum Analysis, Raman / Q000379:methods