New Design of a Photon Counting Detector for Breast CT

乳腺CT光子计数探测器的新设计

• 批准号: 7669824
• 负责人: VIVEK V NAGARKAR
• 金额: $ 19.15万
• 依托单位: RADIATION MONITORING DEVICES, INC.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-06-11 至 2010-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/7669824
• 关键词: Accounting; Address; Anodes; Attenuated; Biopsy; Breast; Breast Microcalcification; California; Cardiovascular system; CdZnTe; Cessation of life; Chest wall structure; Clinical Research; Clinical effectiveness; Collaborations; Computer software; Coupled; DCNU; Data; Detection; Development; Devices; Diagnosis; Diagnostic; Diagnostic Imaging; Diagnostic radiologic examination; Digital Mammography; Digital Radiography; Digital X-Ray; Discrimination; Disease; Dose; Early Diagnosis; Electronics; Electrons; Elements; Engineering; Ensure; Equipment; Evaluation; Extravasation; Film; Foundations; Future; Goals; Government; Growth; Head; Heart Diseases; Height; Image; Imagery; Individual; Laboratories; Legal patent; Lesion; Letters; Malignant Neoplasms; Mammary Gland Parenchyma; Mammography; Manufacturer Name; Maps; Measurement; Measures; Medical; Methods; Military Personnel; Modality; Modeling; Newly Diagnosed; Noise; Patients; Performance; Persons; Phase; Photons; Physics; Plant Roots; Program Reviews; Property; Publishing; Radiation Monitoring; Radiation Scattering; Reporting; Research; Research Personnel; Resolution; Roentgen Rays; Scanning; Screening procedure; Semiconductors; Side; Signal Transduction; Sorting - Cell Movement; Source; Speed; Staging; Structure; Subgroup; System; Technology; Testing; Thick; Time; Tissues; Tomography, Computed, Scanners; Tungsten; United States; Universities; Ursidae Family; Woman; Work; Writing; X-Ray Computed Tomography; absorption; base; breast cancer diagnosis; commercialization; cost; cost effective; data acquisition; density; design; detector; diagnostic accuracy; digital; experience; improved; innovation; instrument; interest; malignant breast neoplasm; meetings; monitoring device; mortality; novel; prevent; professor; programs; prototype; public health relevance; response; sensor; solid state; spectroscopic imaging; statistics

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Breast cancer is a serious disease that accounts for approximately 40,000 deaths per year in the United States alone. Unfortunately, there is no simple, easily addressed cause of breast cancer, and until the root causes can be identified and eliminated, the best way to prevent mortality is early detection. In the past 15 years, breast cancer mortality has been reduced significantly, which is in part due to screening with film-screen mammography. Nonetheless, conventional film-screen mammography lacks sensitivity, especially for certain subgroups of women such as those with dense breast tissue. Digital mammography has shown promise in imaging dense breast tissue, but has otherwise shown only modest clinical effectiveness over film screen mammography. By improving visualization of breast tissue, X-ray computed tomography (CT) of the breast could potentially provide improvements in diagnostic accuracy over conventional mammography. Unfortunately, however, current breast CT prototype systems use "integrating" detectors, which result in sub- optimal spatial resolution and reduced lesion contrast. Since such detectors have no means to distinguish between direct and scattered radiation, overall signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in the image is also degraded, which further reduces detectability of subtle changes in the tissue density and presence of microcalcifications. To address these issues we propose to develop a cost-effective high-resolution detector element for use in photon-counting digital X-ray imaging systems. The module will consist of a monolithic sensor of appropriate thickness to absorb X-rays with high efficiency, coupled to our specially designed Digital Pixel Sensor (DPS) readout. Each of these pixels will support a high enough data rate to effectively measure individual source X-rays. Practical considerations such as design modularity will be emphasized. In addition to the sensor head, the detector module will include readout electronics, the necessary data acquisition hardware, and software. For the X-ray energies typically used in mammography and digital radiography, this detector would provide high efficiency, high resolution, and photon counting capability with appropriate levels of energy discrimination. Thus, the modular detector is expected to form an important basic building block for clinically meaningful breast CT instruments in particular and for other medical and non-medical CT systems and radiography scanners in general. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The goal of the proposed research is to develop a very high performance, cost effective, individual photon counting detector for breast CT as well as for other medical CT and digital radiography use. The development of such a detector will significantly improve the resolution and sensitivity with which measurements can be made. In turn, this will allow precise screening, diagnosis and staging, and treatments to curtail the progression of and even cure certain cancers, diseases of the heart and disorders of the circulatory system. Outside medical use, this detector will be extremely important for such applications as X-ray inspections at airports and borders.

描述（由申请人提供）：乳腺癌是一种严重的疾病，仅在美国每年就造成约 40,000 人死亡。不幸的是，乳腺癌没有简单、容易解决的原因，在找出并消除根本原因之前，预防死亡的最佳方法是早期发现。在过去 15 年中，乳腺癌死亡率已显着降低，部分原因是胶片乳腺 X 线摄影筛查。尽管如此，传统的胶片乳房X光检查缺乏敏感性，特别是对于某些女性亚群，例如那些乳腺组织致密的女性。数字乳房X线照相术在致密乳腺组织成像方面显示出良好的前景，但与胶片屏幕乳房X线照相术相比，仅显示出有限的临床效果。通过改善乳腺组织的可视化，乳腺 X 射线计算机断层扫描 (CT) 可能比传统乳房 X 光检查提高诊断准确性。然而不幸的是，当前的乳腺 CT 原型系统使用“集成”探测器，这导致空间分辨率次优并降低了病变对比度。由于此类探测器无法区分直接辐射和散射辐射，图像中的整体信噪比 (SNR) 也会降低，这进一步降低了组织密度细微变化和微钙化存在的可检测性。为了解决这些问题，我们建议开发一种经济高效的高分辨率探测器元件，用于光子计数数字 X 射线成像系统。该模块将由厚度适当的单片传感器组成，可高效吸收 X 射线，并与我们专门设计的数字像素传感器 (DPS) 读数装置相结合。这些像素中的每一个都将支持足够高的数据速率，以有效测量单个源 X 射线。将强调设计模块化等实际考虑因素。除了传感器头之外，探测器模块还包括读出电子设备、必要的数据采集硬件和软件。对于通常用于乳房X线照相术和数字放射线照相术的X射线能量，该探测器将提供高效率、高分辨率和光子计数能力以及适当水平的能量辨别。因此，模块化探测器有望成为临床有意义的乳腺 CT 仪器以及其他医疗和非医疗 CT 系统和放射线扫描仪的重要基本构建模块。公共健康相关性：拟议研究的目标是开发一种性能非常高、具有成本效益的个体光子计数探测器，用于乳腺 CT 以及其他医学 CT 和数字放射成像用途。这种探测器的开发将显着提高测量的分辨率和灵敏度。反过来，这将允许精确的筛查、诊断和分期以及治疗，以遏制甚至治愈某些癌症、心脏疾病和循环系统疾病。除了医疗用途之外，该探测器对于机场和边境的 X 射线检查等应用也极其重要。