Including the effect of molecular interference in the coherent x-ray scattering modeling in MC-GPU and PENELOPE for the study of novel breast imaging modalities

Abstract

Purpose: To present upgraded versions of MC-GPU and PenEASY Imaging, two open-source Monte Carlo codes for the simulation of radiographic projections and CT. The codes have been extended with the aim of studying breast imaging modalities that rely on the accurate modeling of coherent x-ray scatter. Methods: The simulation codes were extended to account for the effect of molecular interference in coherent scattering using experimentally measured molecular interference functions. The validity of the new model was tested experimentally using the Energy Dispersive X-Ray Diffraction (EDXRD) technique with a polychromatic x-ray source and an energy-resolved Germanium detector at a fixed scattering angle. Experiments and simulations of a full field digital mammography system with and without a 1D focused antiscatter grid were conducted for additional validation. The modified MC-GPU code was also used to examine the possibility of characterizing breast cancer within a mathematical breast phantom using the EDXRD technique. Results: The measured EDXRD spectra were correctly reproduced by the simulation with the modified code while the previous code using the Independent Atomic Approximation led to large errors in the predicted diffraction spectra. There was good agreement between the simulated and measured rejection factor for the 1D focused antiscatter grid with both models. The simulation study in a whole breast showed that the x-ray scattering profiles of adipose, fibrosis, cancer and benign tissues are differentiable. Conclusion: MC-GPU and PENELOPE were successfully extended and validated for accurate modeling of coherent x-ray scatter. The EDXRD technique with pencil-cone geometry in a whole breast was investigated by a simulation study and it was concluded that this technique has potential to characterize breast cancer lesions.