Featured ArticleCone-Beam Computed Tomography for Breast Imaging
Section snippets
Introduction: perspective
Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed non-skin cancer in women, accounting for 26% of cancer occurrence (American Cancer Society, 2007). It is the second leading cause of cancer death among all women (only lung cancer is more common). Breast cancer is the leading cause of death in females 40 to 59 years of age (American Cancer Society, 2007, Jemal et al., 2007). Early detection, which is associated with an increased survival rate, is the primary method to contain the disease (Hendrick
Results of the University of Rochester Pilot Study of Normal Volunteers are as Follows (Unpublished)
- (1)
Breast Coverage: Adequate coverage was made possible by table design with several aperture modifications, allowing the shoulder to relax into the imaging field, therefore, giving good coverage from the chest wall to anterior nipple line.
- (2)
Image Quality: Compression is essential in mammography to obtain optimal images. This is of paramount importance in producing good images because reduced breast thickness leads to reduced scatter and also reduces exposure time, which leads to decreased motion
Conclusion
CBCT technology of the breast appears to be comparable to mammography in visualizing all types of breast parenchyma and may be superior in lesion detection because of removal of structural overlap because of the tomographic nature of the modality. Imaging of the volunteers in the University of Rochester Medical Center pilot study showed that this is an exciting new technology with great potential for 3D imaging of the breast with wide-ranging applications not only for breast imaging but also
Acknowledgment
NIH grant support. This manuscript has not been previously presented.
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