{
  "abstract": "Introduction: Accurate detection of malignant cells in ovarian cancer ascites is essential for diagnosis and surgical staging. However, conventional cytological examination is hampered by low sensitivity and interpretive subjectivity. We evaluated a dual-modality strategy combining a near-infrared fluorescent zwitterionic folic acid (ZW-FA) probe targeting folate receptor α with serum biomarkers.\n\nMethods: Ascites and peritoneal lavage specimens were processed into cell blocks. A ZW-FA fluorescence cutoff was exploratorily derived using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Diagnostic performance of ZW-FA staining (quantified using ImageJ), hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) staining, serum cancer antigen 125 (CA125), human epididymis protein 4, and the risk of ovarian malignancy algorithm was assessed individually and in combination. Postoperative histopathological diagnosis served as the reference standard.\n\nResults: Among 80 participants, the optimal ZW-FA cutoff was 48.40 (area under the curve = 0.881). Automated fluorescence quantification achieved 100.00% technical reproducibility, providing an objective and consistent readout. ZW-FA correctly classified 2 of 5 (40.00%) specimens that were non-diagnostic by H&E because of insufficient cellularity. In the complete-case comparative analysis of 65 participants, ZW-FA showed higher diagnostic accuracy than H&E staining (86.15% vs. 81.54%). The combination of ZW-FA staining and serum CA125 achieved a sensitivity of 100.00%, a specificity of 81.25%, and an accuracy of 95.38%, exceeding the accuracy of all H&E-based dual-modality strategies (≤ 90.77%).\n\nConclusion: The ZW-FA/CA125 dual-modality strategy may improve the diagnostic assessment of ovarian cancer ascites and peritoneal lavage specimens, particularly in paucicellular samples. Further validation in larger, independent multicenter cohorts is warranted.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China",
    "Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Peking University People’s Hospital, Beijing, China",
    "Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 14,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Min Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Dongxin Liang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Lanbo Zhao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yiran Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Xin He"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Wen Zhang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Tiantian Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yadi Bin"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Yu Liu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Ruining Ma"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Zhe Yang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Siyi Zhang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yuqi Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Qiling Li",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-3763-4456"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kt0e3ntdrhaw.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1177/15330338261488986",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13724887/",
  "id": "7kt0e3ntdrhaw",
  "issns": [
    "1533-0346",
    "1533-0338"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1177/15330338261488986",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Original Research Article"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2743|Ovarian cancer diagnosis and treatment"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7213499830",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": "PMC13724887",
  "pmid": "42753264",
  "published": "2026-09-17",
  "publisher": "SAGE Publications",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kt0e3ntdrhaw.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T12:23:23Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13724887",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1177/15330338261488986"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2743|Ovarian cancer diagnosis and treatment",
      "subfield": "reproductive-child"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Near-Infrared Fluorescent Zwitterionic Folic Acid Probe and Serum CA125 for Enhancing Diagnostic Accuracy of Malignant Ovarian Cancer Ascites",
  "title_text": "Near-Infrared Fluorescent Zwitterionic Folic Acid Probe and Serum CA125 for Enhancing Diagnostic Accuracy of Malignant Ovarian Cancer Ascites",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-06T12:21:16Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7kt0e3ntdrhaw",
  "venue": "Technology in Cancer Research & Treatment",
  "versions": []
}