Anthropomorphic breast phantoms for evaluation of FFDM/DBT and breast CT using inkjet printing

Abstract

The breast phantoms currently available for evaluating full field digital mammography (FFDM), digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT), and breast CT (bCT) systems often lack the complexity present in real breasts. In this work we present a new methodology for creating physical anthropomorphic breast phantoms for use in FFDM, DBT, and dedicated bCT systems using zinc acetate-doped ink. First, an uncompressed virtual phantom was created through analytical modeling. The model represented a breast with 28% fibroglandular density with 13 tissue classes and contained a 5 mm lesion. The breast was binarized to two tissue classes: adipose and fibroglandular tissue. The phantom was then realized through inkjet printing using dye ink doped with zinc acetate for the fibroglandular components and three candidate materials for the adipose background: parchment paper, organic paper, and office paper. The fabrication process was evaluated in terms of material realism and reproducibility using spectroscopy, a clinical FFDM system, and a benchtop bCT system. The linear attenuation coefficient of the doped ink plus parchment paper and parchment paper alone closely matched those of the fibroglandular and adipose tissues, respectively. A methodology for generating anthropomorphic breast phantoms was developed using a novel inkjet printing technique for use in FFDM/DBT, as well as dedicated breast CT systems. A novel uncompressed breast phantom for bCT was fabricated using inexpensive, easily available materials with realistic tissue properties.