Enhanced terahertz near-field nanoscopic imaging for label-free assessment of ovarian cancer cells: a preliminary study

This preliminary study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of enhanced terahertz (THz) scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy (s-SNOM) for the label-free, nanoscale imaging of ovarian cancer cells. Leveraging an advanced THz s-SNOM platform integrated with zero-intermediate frequency radar detection and atomic force microscopy (AFM), we investigated the morphological and intrinsic dielectric properties of ovarian cancer cells under various preparation protocols. Paraffin-embedded cell sections deposited on silicon dioxide (SiO 2 ) and gold substrates demonstrated clear correlations between AFM-derived topographical maps and THz near-field images, revealing subcellular structures such as distinct nuclear and cytoplasmic domains without the use of exogenous labels. Additionally, imaging of air-dried ES-2 ovarian cancer cell suspensions on gold substrates further improved morphological preservation and contrast resolution compared to paraffin-embedded sections. Our findings indicate that THz s-SNOM enables label-free, nanoscale characterization of cellular architecture and composition, yielding insights into cellular heterogeneity relevant to ovarian cancer research and diagnostics.