Breast cancer diagnosis using frequency decomposition of surface motion of actuated breast tissue.

This paper presents a computationally simple diagnostic algorithm for breast cancer using a non-invasive Digital Image Elasto Tomography (DIET) system. N=14 women (28 breasts, 13 cancerous) underwent a clinical trial using the DIET system following mammography diagnosis. The screening involves steady state sinusoidal vibrations applied to the free hanging breast with cameras used to capture tissue motion. Image reconstruction methods provide surface displacement data for approximately 14,000 reference points on the breast surface. The breast surface was segmented into four radial and four vertical segments. Frequency decomposition of reference point motion in each segment were compared. Segments on the same vertical band were hypothesised to have similar frequency content in healthy breasts, with significant differences indicating a tumor, based on the stiffness dependence of frequency and tumors being 4~10 times stiffer than healthy tissue. Twelve breast configurations were used to test robustness of the method. Optimal breast configuration for the 26 breasts analysed (13 cancerous, 13 healthy) resulted in 85% sensitivity and 77% specificity. Combining two opposite configurations resulted in correct diagnosis of all cancerous breasts with 100% sensitivity and 69% specificity. Bootstrapping was used to fit a smooth receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve to compare breast configuration performance with optimal area under the curve (AUC) of 0.85. Diagnostic results show diagnostic accuracy is comparable or better than mammography, with the added benefits of DIET screening, including portability, non-invasive screening, and no breast compression, with potential to increase screening participation and equity, improving outcomes for women.

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Copyright © 2022 Fitzjohn, Zhou and Chase.

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The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.