An X-Ray computed tomography/positron emission tomography system designed specifically for breast imaging.
Mammography has served the population of women who are at-risk for breast cancer well over the past 30 years. While mammography has undergone a number of changes as digital detector technology has advanced, other modalities such as computed tomography have experienced technological sophistication over this same time frame as well. The advent of large field of view flat panel detector systems enable the development of breast CT and several other niche CT applications, which rely on cone beam geometry. The breast, it turns out, is well suited to cone beam CT imaging because the lack of bones reduces artifacts, and the natural tapering of the breast anteriorly reduces the x-ray path lengths through the breast at large cone angle, reducing cone beam artifacts as well. We are in the process of designing a third prototype system which will enable the use of breast CT for image guided interventional procedures. This system will have several copies fabricated so that several breast CT scanners can be used in a multi-institutional clinical trial to better understand the role that this technology can bring to breast imaging.
Boone
John M
JM
Department of Radiology Engineering University of California, Davis UC Davis Medical Center 4860 Y Street, ACC Suite 3100 Sacramento, CA 95817, USA. john.boone@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu
Yang
Kai
K
Burkett
George W
GW
Packard
Nathan J
NJ
Huang
Shih-ying
SY
Bowen
Spencer
S
Badawi
Ramsey D
RD
Lindfors
Karen K
KK
D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D017322:Clinical Trials, Phase II as Topic; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008327:Mammography; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*
D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals