Applications of spectroscopy in diagnosis, staging, and treatment of urologic malignancies

Purpose of reviewTo review the scientific literature on clinical applications of spectroscopy within urologic oncology. Specifically, we address the role of spectroscopy as a novel intraoperative or intraprocedural modality for the management of urothelial carcinoma, renal cell carcinoma, and prostate adenocarcinoma.Recent findingsRecent studies have demonstrated that spectroscopy models, suitable for translation to in-vivo clinical use, can differentiate between benign parenchyma and malignant tissue for urothelial carcinoma, renal cell carcinoma, and prostate adenocarcinoma. Recent work has also established spectroscopy as a feasible modality to detect biologically aggressive high-risk disease and classify natural biomarkers.SummarySpectroscopy has the ability to objectively diagnose and stage malignancies in real time without tissue or cellular disruption. In the future, additional in-vivo studies will be needed to demonstrate that current models remain robust under physiological conditions.