Quantitative Acoustic Attenuation Scanning Using a Phase-Insensitive Ultrasound Computed Tomography System.

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Biophysics
• Acoustics

Background:

• False-positive results in breast cancer screening cause patient distress and healthcare inefficiency.
• Quantitative Ultrasound (QUS) offers a method to measure intrinsic acoustic properties for enhanced clinical decisions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the performance of a novel phase-insensitive ultrasound computed tomography (Q-UCT) scanner.
• To evaluate the system's capability for quantitative acoustic attenuation coefficient mapping of breast tissue.

Main Methods:

• Scans were performed on anthropomorphic breast phantoms using the novel Q-UCT system.
• Results were compared against X-ray computed tomography (XCT) and ground-truth attenuation measurements.
• The system's ability to detect small inserts and measure attenuation coefficients was assessed.

Main Results:

• The Q-UCT system successfully detected inserts as small as 4 mm in diameter.
• Accurate measurements of intrinsic attenuation coefficients (0.7–4.1 dB cm⁻¹ at 3.2 MHz) were achieved for various materials.
• Measurements for host materials showed agreement within expanded uncertainties of ground-truth values.

Conclusions:

• The novel phase-insensitive Q-UCT system demonstrates reliable performance for quantitative acoustic attenuation mapping of breast tissue.
• This technology has the potential to improve the accuracy of breast cancer screening and reduce false-positive findings.
• Further development could lead to more effective and less burdensome diagnostic tools.