Breast Cancer Detection and Management Using 3D Quantitative Ultrasonic Diffraction Tomography

摘要

The broad objective of the project is to investigate, develop, and evaluate the application of 3D ultrasonic diffraction tomography (UDT) for detection of breast cancer. UDT can be viewed as a generalization of x-ray tomography where x-rays have been replaced with acoustical wave. It can determine refractive index distributions within the breast that are of interest clinically and can be an excellent imaging modality for breast cancer because it can provide information complementary to that obtained from mammograms and because it is non-invasive, free of radiation hazard, and reproducible. While UDT promises potentially important advantages over conventional ultrasonic imaging and has found important uses in a wide variety of engineering and scientific disciplines, its application to breast imaging remains largely unexplored.