New imaging technique could make brain tumor removal safer, more effective, study suggests

Brain surgery is famously difficult for good reason: When removing a tumor, for example, neurosurgeons walk a tightrope as they try to take out as much of the cancer as possible while keeping crucial brain tissue intact -- and visually distinguishing the two is often impossible. Now researchers report they have developed an imaging technology that could provide surgeons with a color-coded map of a patient's brain showing which areas are and are not cancer.