SU-E-I-61: Phantom Design for Phase Contrast Breast Imaging.

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging Physics
• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Science

Background:

• Phase contrast imaging offers enhanced visualization of breast anatomy.
• Developing appropriate phantoms is crucial for evaluating implementation choices in phase contrast breast imaging.
• Existing mammography phantoms may not be suitable for phase contrast techniques.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design a suitable phantom for phase contrast breast imaging.
• To identify breast-equivalent materials that accurately mimic tissue properties for phase contrast imaging.
• To evaluate materials for simulating both background breast tissue and microcalcifications.

Main Methods:

• Determined the refractive index decrement (delta) for various breast tissues and phantom materials across a mammography energy range (5-100 KeV).
• Calculated delta using XOP software for materials including paraffin wax, beeswax, solid water, BR-12, PMMA, and breast-equivalent materials.
• Assessed delta values for calcium oxalate monohydrate, calcium hydroxyapatite, calcium carbonate, gold, and aluminum to simulate microcalcifications.

Main Results:

• Paraffin wax and beeswax demonstrated delta values closest to 50% and 100% glandular breast tissue, respectively.
• Common phantom materials like CIRS breast-equivalent, solid water, and BR-12 had delta values orders of magnitude higher than breast tissue.
• Aluminum and calcium carbonate were found to be suitable surrogates for simulating microcalcifications (calcium oxalate and hydroxyapatite).

Conclusions:

• A phantom composed of paraffin wax (50% glandular), beeswax (100% glandular), and calcium carbonate or aluminum (microcalcifications) is appropriate for phase contrast imaging.
• This phantom design facilitates the evaluation of different phase contrast imaging implementation strategies.
• The findings support the development of advanced breast imaging techniques using optimized phantom materials.