Interferometric X-Ray Imaging of Breast Cancer Specimens at 51 keV X-Ray Energy

Abstract

The feasibility of the interferometric X-ray imaging technique is examined for revealing the features of breast cancer specimens. The interferometric X-ray imaging system consisted of an asymmetrically cut silicon crystal, a monolithic X-ray interferometer, a phase-shifter, an object cell, and an X-ray CCD camera. Ten 10-mm-thick formalin-fixed breast cancer specimens were imaged at 51 keV, and these images were compared with absorption-contrast X-ray images obtained at 18 keV monochromatic synchrotron X-ray. The interferometric X-ray images clearly depicted the essential features of the breast cancer such as microcalcification down to a size of 0.036 mm, spiculation, and detailed inner soft tissue structures closely matched with histopathological morphology, while the absorption-contrast X-ray images obtained using nearly the same X-ray dose only resolved microcalcification down to a size of 0.108 mm and spiculation. The interferometric X-ray imaging technique can be considered to be an innovative technique for the early and accurate diagnosis of breast cancer using an extremely low X-ray dose.