title: Multiple biopsy probe sampling enabled minimally invasive electrical impedance tomography.
abstract: Biopsies are a reliable method for examining tissues and organs inside the body, in particular for detection of tumors. However, a single biopsy produces only limited information on the site from which it is taken. Therefore, tumor detection now employs multiple biopsy samplings to examine larger volumes of tissue. Nevertheless, even with multiple biopsies, the information remains discrete, while the costs of biopsy increase. Here we propose and evaluate the feasibility of using minimally invasive medical imaging as a means to overcome the limitations of discrete biopsy sampling. The minimally invasive medical imaging technique employs the biopsy probe as electrodes for measurements of electrical impedance tomography relevant data during each biopsy sampling. The data from multiple samplings are combined and used to produce an EIT image of the tissue. Two- and three-dimensional mathematical simulations confirm that the minimally invasive medical imaging technique can produce electrical impedance tomography images of the tissues between the biopsy probe insertion sites. We show that these images can detect tumors that would be missed with multiple biopsy samplings only, and that the technique may facilitate the detection of tumors with fewer biopsies, thereby reducing the cost of cancer detection.
authors.affiliation: Center for Bioengineering, Service of Humanity and Society, School of Engineering and Computer Science, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Givat Ram Campus, Jerusalem, Israel.
authors.forename: Mohanad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shini
authors.forename: Boris
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rubinsky
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001706:Biopsy / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D017097:Electric Impedance; D004566:Electrodes; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D006801:Humans; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D014054:Tomography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*