Optical breast shape capture and finite-element mesh generation for electrical impedance tomography

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Medical Imaging
• Electrical Engineering

Background:

• X-ray mammography is standard for breast cancer screening but uses ionizing radiation.
• Alternative imaging modalities are needed to reduce radiation exposure.
• Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) offers a low-cost, radiation-free method to assess tissue conductivity, an indicator of cancer.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a method for improving breast EIT image reconstruction accuracy.
• To reduce image artifacts caused by inaccurate modeling of breast shape and electrode placement.
• To enhance the clinical utility of EIT for breast cancer diagnosis.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a 3D hand-held optical scanner to capture patient breast geometry and electrode positions.
• Developed data processing techniques to generate accurate, patient-specific finite-element meshes.
• Applied these meshes to the EIT reconstruction algorithm.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated the ability to create accurate, patient-specific meshes matching breast surface and electrode locations.
• Successfully applied the method to a plaster breast phantom and a human subject.
• The approach showed potential for reducing image artifacts in EIT reconstruction.

Conclusions:

• Accurate modeling of breast shape and electrode placement is crucial for reducing EIT image artifacts.
• 3D optical scanning provides a viable method for acquiring patient-specific geometry for EIT.
• This technique has the potential to significantly improve the clinical value of EIT in breast cancer diagnosis.