The objective of this Phase I SBIR grant application us to build a laboratory feasibility, breast cancer imaging system, that demonstrates synergistic benefits of combining Vibro-Acoustic Emission (VAE) technology with advanced Ultrasound Reflection Tomography (URT) and quantitative Ultrasound Inverse Scattering Tomography (UIST). A duplicate of a VAE imaging subsystem working at Mayo Clinic will be added to a working URT and UIST imaging subsystem at TSI. This new hybrid system will first be tested with cylindrical and 3-D anthropomorphic breast test objects (phantoms) that contain simulated benign and cancerous lesions and Micro Calcifications (MC) in patterns, which simulate benign and cancerous tissues, such a Ductile Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS) and Lobular Carcinoma (LC). As part of the Phase I feasibility study, a second level of testing will use at least 3 volunteers in a pilot study to determine the advantages of combining VAE with UIST and URT imaging modes. The sensitivity of VAE to MC will be combined with the high resolution, sensitivity and specificity of URT and UIST to soft tissue properties. These volunteers will be selected from a population with positive mammograms for MC that includes mammograms associated with probable benign, probable DCIS and probable LC. The small size of the pilot study reflects a compromise between using working sensitive equipment built for detecting MC in a controlled laboratory environment with testing this equipment as soon as possible on human subjects. Phase II work will add improved electronics; higher scan speed, more accurate imaging and a larger clinical study.
