Photoacoustic technique reduces waiting time for breast cancer diagnosis

Breast cancer diagnosis can take a number of weeks, involving a visit to the GP, followed by an x-ray mammogram and an ultrasound or even an MRI, before the patient finally undergoes a biopsy.

The new system, being developed by researchers at the University of Twente in the Netherlands, uses light and sound to detect signs of a tumour. The photoacoustic technique combines lasers and photonics with ultrasound.

The patient lies face down on a bed, placing their breast into a hemispherical bowl lined with up to 100 optical fibres, and several ultrasound detectors.

Multiple images are taken from different angles. These are then assembled into a single 3D image, according to Srirang Manohar, the project coordinator.

“The imager will be non-invasive, will not require contrast agents nor use ionising radiation,” he said. “Furthermore, the patient will feel no pain or discomfort.”

The PAMMOTH (Photoacoustic Ultrasound Mammoscopy for evaluating screening-detected abnormalities in the breast) system operates by sending short pulses of light towards the suspect lesion.