Based on clinical trials since 1963, it appears that breast examination (CBE) in combination with mammography may be the best strategy for high sensitivity and specificity in breast cancer screening provided CBE can be quantitative with digital (and standardized) reporting. Quantitative imaging of the palpable structure of the tumor may help decipher the abnormal changes in the breast and sentinel lymph nodes over time. An inexpensive, noninvasive screening tool with the ability to detect tumors as small as ~5mm could be used in a sequential approach to early detection. The long- term objective of this research is to develop a thin-film nanodevice, i.e., electronic skin, that will convert the pressure distribution on physical contact to light that can be imaged directly on a digital camera at a resolution on par with the human finger (~20 Development of an inexpensive, noninvasive, handheld screening tool for early detection of breast cancer that can image the palpability of a tumor and the nature of its attachment to surrounding tissue will enable family physicians and other clinicians to screen patients who do not have access to the more expensive screening tool and avoid unnecessary exposure to radiation used in mammography. The quantitative image with size, hardness, and palpability of the mass will provide a set of orthogonal measurements that will significantly improve the procedure of clinical breast examination (CBE) and improve specificity, i.e., low false positives, to help physicians make well-informed decisions to perform further testing and initiate therapy at the earliest stages of breast cancer.Public Health Relevance
| Van Nguyen, Chieu; Saraf, Ravi F (2014) Tactile imaging of an imbedded palpable structure for breast cancer screening. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 6:16368-74 |
| Nguyen, Chieu; Maheshwari, Vivek; Saraf, Ravi F (2012) Ultrasoft 100 nm thick zero Poisson's ratio film with 60% reversible compressibility. Nano Lett 12:2171-5 |
| Maheshwari, Vivek; Fomenko, Dmitri E; Singh, Gaurav et al. (2010) Ion mediated monolayer deposition of gold nanoparticles on microorganisms: discrimination by age. Langmuir 26:371-7 |
