Wide-Field OCT Showcased for Intraoperative Margin Assessment in Breast-Conserving Surgery
At the 2025 Annual Clinical Assembly of the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons, Amelia Tower, DO, a breast surgical oncologist and founder of Breast Associates of Texas, presented early clinical experience using wide-field optical coherence tomography (OCT) during breast-conserving procedures.
Her session, “Use of Adjunct Wide-field Optical Coherence Tomography to Visualize Margins During Breast Conserving Surgery: A Case Series,” highlighted how the technology can be integrated intraoperatively to visualize cellular-level detail at the resection margin. Dr. Tower demonstrated real-world cases with the Perimeter S-Series OCT system, which received FDA clearance in 2021 for general imaging. A next-generation AI-enabled version of the platform is currently under FDA review for breast cancer–specific intraoperative use.
“One of the greatest challenges in breast-conserving surgery is the inability to assess margins with real-time precision,” Tower noted. “When re-excisions are required, patients endure additional stress and delays in adjuvant treatment. Tools such as OCT have the potential to reduce repeat surgeries by helping us better evaluate margins in the operating room.”
The presentation also addressed the clinical and logistical burden of re-excision, a problem affecting a significant subset of lumpectomy patients. OCT, by providing rapid imaging of microstructural features across wide tissue areas, may supplement existing frozen section or pathology workflows, offering surgeons a practical adjunct to improve intraoperative decision-making.
Dr. Tower, who is board-certified and fellowship-trained, has authored multiple publications on surgical innovation. Her talk contributes to an expanding body of literature exploring intraoperative imaging modalities to improve outcomes in breast-conserving surgery.
The Annual Clinical Assembly draws more than 1,200 multidisciplinary surgeons from across the United States, offering a venue for new data, technical updates, and continuing education.