KEYWORDS: Breast, Monte Carlo methods, Optical spheres, 3D image processing, Phase contrast, 3D modeling, Polymethylmethacrylate, Software development, Tomography, Visualization
A complete software platform based on anthropomorphic breast models used with both planar and three-dimensional phase contrast breast imaging is presented and subjectively validated. For the development of the platform, tests with three anthropomorphic breast phantoms, available both in computational and physical form, were designed and implemented. The models are characterized with different complexity: two phantoms are with spheres and one anthropomorphic. Further on, two of the physical breast models were created with the use of 3D printing techniques. These phantoms with thickness of 40 mm and 31 mm, respectively, were based on digital phantoms created with in-house developed software tools. The third physical breast phantom is the L1 phantom developed at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven with 58 mm thickness. Based on this physical phantom, a computational one was created. The three physical breast phantoms were imaged at ID17 biomedical imaging line at ESRF. Two acquisition setups were used: planar and limited angle tomography modes. Simulated and experimental planar and three-dimensional images were compared in terms of visual reproducibility. Results showed that phantoms characterized with more simple structure produce subjectively similar experimental and simulation appearance in terms of object reproduction and similar edge effects. The thicker phantom demonstrated lower visual coincidence between the two types of planar images, due to higher thickness and higher energy incident beam. The results of this study will be used in the design of new experimental study, to be conducted at lower incident beam energy as well as improving the modelling of phase contrast imaging by using Monte Carlo techniques.
KEYWORDS: Breast, Monte Carlo methods, Sensors, Tissues, Digital breast tomosynthesis, Clinical trials, X-rays, 3D image processing, X-ray imaging, Breast imaging
In silico reproductions of clinical exams represent an alternative strategy in the research and development of medical devices, which permit to avoid issues and costs related to clinical trials on patient population. In this work, we present a platform for virtual clinical trials in 2D and 3D x-ray breast imaging. The platform, developed by the medical physics team at University of Naples, Italy, permits to simulate digital mammography (DM), digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) and CT dedicated to the breast (BCT) examinations. It relies on Monte Carlo simulations based on Geant4 toolkit and adopts digital models of patients derived from high-resolution 3D clinical breast images acquired at UC Davis, USA. Uncompressed digital breast models for BCT exam simulations were produced by means of a tissue classification algorithm; the compressed digital breast models for simulating DM and DBT are derived by the uncompressed ones via a simulated tissue compression. For a selected exam, specifications and digital patient, the platform computes breast image projections and glandular dose maps within the organ. Energy integrating a well as photon counting and spectral imaging detection scheme have been simulated. The current version of the software uses the Geant4 standard physics list Option4 and simulates and tracks <105 photons/s, when run on a 16-core CPU at 3.0 GHz. The developed platform will be an invaluable tool for R and D of apparatuses, and it will permit the access to clinical-like data to a broad research community. Digital patient exposures with the available phantom dataset will be possible for the same patient-derived phantom in uncompressed or compressed format, in DM, DBT and BCT modalities.
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