Development of patient-specific molecular imaging phantoms using a 3D printer

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Biomedical Engineering
• Additive Manufacturing

Background:

• Patient-specific phantoms are crucial for accurate medical imaging research.
• Current methods for creating phantoms can be time-consuming and expensive.
• Advancements in 3D printing offer potential for improved phantom production.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate rapid prototyping for producing patient-specific, cost-effective, liquid-fillable phantoms.
• To create phantoms directly from patient Computed Tomography (CT) data.
• To develop a method applicable to various anatomical or geometrical phantom designs.

Main Methods:

• Segmentation of liver, spleen, and kidney volumes from patient CT data.
• Conversion of organ data to shells with added features for printing using computer-aided design (CAD).
• 3D printing of phantoms using ultraviolet curable photopolymer via PolyJet technology.

Main Results:

• The printed phantoms are made of a clear, solid acrylic plastic that is watertight, rigid, and durable.
• Initial scans using Technetium-99m Single-Photon Emission Computed Tomography (Tc-99m SPECT) and Fluorine-18 Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography (F-18 PET/CT) have been performed.
• The organ geometry in the phantoms demonstrated good correspondence with anatomical references.

Conclusions:

• The developed rapid prototyping methodology is effective for creating patient-specific anatomical phantoms.
• The technique can be broadly applied to other anatomical or geometrical phantom designs for molecular imaging.
• This approach offers a cost-effective and efficient solution for producing specialized imaging phantoms.