3D SONOELASTOGRAPHY IMAGING FOR PROSTATE CANCER

描述（由申请人提供）：前列腺癌是最常见的男性癌症，也是男性癌症死亡的第二大原因，目前通过筛查PSA和体格检查进行检测，并通过TRUS引导的前列腺活检进行确认。 目前的诊断灵敏度受到肿瘤可视化差和采样不足的限制。我们的基本假设是，超声弹性成像可以检测到前列腺癌，否则在传统的体内US成像中看起来正常。这个假设的一个推论是，三维超声弹性成像可以标定并帮助计算可疑肿瘤区域的体积。由于更好的活检引导和更少的假阴性活检，声弹性超声成像将使前列腺癌的早期诊断成为可能。三维肿瘤体积分析将为定制治疗提供定量和定位，包括近距离放射治疗中的肿瘤增强剂量。 我们迄今为止的进展，导致了新的信息，包括混叠和模态模式，组织频率依赖性和可变光束模式的基本要素的声弹性成像;和3D图像病理融合技术。我们在体内的工作也同样确定了增益，频率，源光束模式和衰减，这需要控制的变量。我们下一阶段的研究将集中在以下三个目标： 目标1：开发（目前未知的）正常前列腺和前列腺良性和恶性疾病的高患病率的频率依赖性弹性特性的理论和实验表征。(Year 1，后期扩展） 目标二：改进和改进我们的3D超声弹性成像系统，以提高灵敏度、线性度、空间分辨率和振动频率范围，从而提高癌症的可检测性。(Year 1：25例患者） 目的3：应用目的1和2的结果评价超声弹性成像检测体内前列腺癌的临床实用性。（第2-4年：90例患者）

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Prostate Cancer, the most prevalent male cancer and second leading cause of male cancer death, is currently detected by screening PSA and physical examination and confirmed with TRUS-guided prostate biopsy. Current diagnostic sensitivity is limited by poor visualization of tumor and inadequate sampling. Our fundamental hypothesis is that sonoelastography imaging can enable the detection of prostate cancer that otherwise appears normal in conventional in-vivo US imaging. A corollary of this hypothesis is that 3D sonoelastography can demarcate and help to calculate the volume of a suspected tumor region. Sonoelastic ultrasound imaging will enable earlier prostate cancer diagnosis due to better biopsy guidance and fewer false negative biopsies. Three-dimensional tumor volume analysis will provide quantification and localization for customized treatment, including tumor boost dose in brachytherapy. Our progress to date has led to new information regarding basic elements of sonoelastography including aliasing and modal patterns, tissue frequency dependence and variable beam patterns; and the techniques of 3D image pathology fusion. Our in-vivo work has similarly identified variables of gain, frequency, source beam patterns, and attenuation, which need to be controlled. Our next phase of research will focus on the following three aims: Aim 1: Develop the (currently unknown) theoretical and experimental characterization of the frequency dependent elastic properties of the normal prostate and of the prostate with benign and malignant conditions of high prevalence. (Year 1, with later extensions) Aim 2: Refine and advance our 3D Sonoelastography systems to increase the sensitivity, linearity, spatial resolution, and vibration frequency range so as to increase the detectability of cancer. (Year 1: 25 patients) Aim 3: Apply the results of aims 1 and 2 to evaluate the clinical utility of in-vivo prostate cancer detection by sonoelastography. (Years 2-4: 90 patients)