Three-compartment-breast (3CB) prior-guided diffuse optical tomography based on dual-energy digital breast...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Imaging
• Medical Physics
• Optical Diagnostics

Background:

• Diffuse optical tomography (DOT) is a non-invasive imaging technique using near-infrared (NIR) light to assess tissue oxygenation and hemoglobin concentration.
• Integrating DOT with anatomical imaging aids diagnosis, but dense breast tissue poses challenges for accurate tumor characterization.
• Current DOT methods may struggle with spatial resolution and contrast, especially in dense breasts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To enhance diffuse optical tomography (DOT) image quality for breast cancer diagnosis, particularly in dense breasts.
• To introduce and validate a three-compartment-breast (3CB) decomposition-based prior-guided DOT method.
• To improve the spatial resolution and contrast of reconstructed tumor images using the 3CB prior.

Main Methods:

• A three-compartment-breast (3CB) model was established using digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) data from a 3D numerical breast phantom.
• Monte Carlo simulations were performed to acquire dual-energy X-ray projections for phantom modeling.
• The 3CB prior was integrated as a structural guide during DOT image reconstruction.

Main Results:

• The proposed 3CB prior-guided DOT method demonstrated improved spatial resolution for reconstructed tumors.
• Enhanced contrast of tumor images was observed, especially when tumors were surrounded by fibroglandular tissue.
• The 3CB method outperformed standard Tikhonov regularization and typical two-composition-prior methods in resolution and contrast.

Conclusions:

• The three-compartment-breast (3CB) prior significantly enhances DOT image quality for breast tumor detection.
• This approach is particularly beneficial for improving the characterization of tumors within dense breast tissue.
• Prior-guided DOT using detailed anatomical information offers a promising advancement in non-invasive breast cancer imaging.