A Time-of-Flight PET scanner for dedicated breast imaging

用于专用乳腺成像的飞行时间 PET 扫描仪

• 批准号: 8101195
• 负责人: Suleman Surti
• 金额: $ 35.27万
• 依托单位: UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-09-01 至 2013-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/8101195
• 关键词: Algorithms; Axilla; Benchmarking; Biopsy; Breast; Breast Cancer Treatment; Calibration; Characteristics; Chest wall structure; Clinical; Data; Detection; Development; Diagnostic Neoplasm Staging; Discrimination; Electronics; Evaluation; FDA approved; Generations; Goals; Health; Human; Image; Imaging Techniques; Lead; Lesion; Mammary Neoplasms; Mammography; Measurement; Mechanics; Modeling; Monitor; Morphologic artifacts; Optics; Organ; PET/CT scan; Patients; Performance; Play; Positioning Attribute; Positron-Emission Tomography; Production; Radio; Resolution; Rotation; Signal Transduction; Solid; Staging; Surface; System; Techniques; Technology; Testing; Time; Tracer; Tube; Tumor stage; Universities; West Virginia; Work; attenuation; base; breast lesion; breast scanner; design; detector; flexibility; image reconstruction; imaging modality; improved; innovation; malignant breast neoplasm; novel; reconstruction; research study; response; simulation; time use; tomography; tumor; uptake; whole body imaging

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): A long-term objective of this work is the development of a dedicated breast PET scanner that can be used for accurately characterizing and monitoring response of early stage breast tumors (stages I and II). This scanner will provide tomographic reconstructed images with very high resolution and sensitivity to detect, characterize, and monitor response in small tumors with low tracer uptake, something that is not performed well in the multi-purpose clinical PET scanners. It will be a partial ring scanner design in order to provide flexibility in imaging the whole breast (including chest wall) and possibly the axilla, to vary the detector separation for different breast sizes, to provide biopsy capability, as well as the potential to combine with other imaging modalities such as optical, mammography, or MR. Dedicated breast PET scanners currently available are forced to trade-off between spatial resolution and sensitivity, and until now the partial ring geometry leads one to choose between low contrast planar images or artifactual tomographic images with limited quantification capability. It is possible to achieve (improved) high quality tomographic images by rotating the detectors, but this adds complexity to the system and also restricts the dynamic imaging capabilities that are key to testing new radio-tracers. In contrast, our design will use time-of-flight (TOF) information to attain high quality and quantitative tomographic images for the partial ring scanner with stationary detectors, while maintaining high spatial resolution and sensitivity throughout the scanner field-of-view (FOV). Our aims are four fold: (i) develop a detector which maintains very good timing resolution while using small and long crystals for high spatial resolution and sensitivity, (ii) demonstrate the extent by which TOF information can compensate for the missing projection data, and investigate the trade-offs involved between spatial resolution, sensitivity, and timing resolution, as well as scanner angular coverage, to achieve an optimal scanner design, (iii) develop a coincidence imaging setup, and (iv) develop data correction and imaging reconstruction techniques for quantitative images followed by a characterization of the imaging performance of the coincidence setup. The work will involve detector measurements and simulations for testing varying crystal sizes and surface finishes, different types of photo-multiplier tubes, and full detector arrays. Full system simulations will be performed based upon detector measurement results for varying scanner geometries as well. Finally, an optimal detector design will be developed into coincident detector arrays and imaging experiments will be performed to demonstrate its capabilities. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Clinically for human imaging, limited spatial resolution and sensitivity of current generation of clinical PET scanners leads to reduced detection and quantification of small breast tumors. By developing a dedicated breast scanner with high resolution and sensitivity, as well as production of full tomographic images, will help in the detection and staging of early stage breast cancer. Hence, the development of a dedicated, TOF, breast scanner has the potential to significantly impact patient treatment for breast cancer.

描述（由申请人提供）：这项工作的长期目标是开发一种专用的乳腺PET扫描仪，可用于准确表征和监测早期乳腺肿瘤（I期和II期）的反应。该扫描仪将提供具有非常高分辨率和灵敏度的断层重建图像，以检测、表征和监测具有低示踪剂摄取的小肿瘤的反应，这在多用途临床PET扫描仪中表现不佳。它将是一个部分环形扫描仪设计，以便在整个乳房成像中提供灵活性（包括胸壁）和可能的腋窝，以针对不同的乳房尺寸改变检测器间隔，以提供活检能力，以及与其他成像模态（诸如光学，乳房X线摄影，或MR。目前可用的专用乳房PET扫描仪被迫在空间分辨率和灵敏度之间进行权衡，到目前为止，部分环形几何形状导致人们在低对比度平面图像或具有有限量化能力的伪断层摄影图像之间进行选择。通过旋转探测器可以获得（改进的）高质量断层图像，但是这增加了系统的复杂性，并且还限制了测试新的放射性示踪剂的关键的动态成像能力。相比之下，我们的设计将使用飞行时间（TOF）信息，以获得高质量和定量的断层扫描图像的部分环形扫描仪与固定的检测器，同时保持高的空间分辨率和灵敏度在整个扫描仪的视野（FOV）。我们有四个目标：（i）开发一种探测器，其在使用小而长的晶体以获得高空间分辨率和灵敏度的同时保持非常好的定时分辨率，（ii）证明TOF信息可以补偿缺失的投影数据的程度，并研究空间分辨率、灵敏度和定时分辨率以及扫描器角度覆盖之间所涉及的权衡，以实现最佳扫描器设计，（iii）开发符合成像装置，以及（iv）开发用于定量图像的数据校正和成像重建技术，随后是符合装置的成像性能的表征。这项工作将涉及探测器测量和模拟测试不同的晶体尺寸和表面光洁度，不同类型的光电倍增管，和完整的探测器阵列。还将根据不同扫描仪几何形状的探测器测量结果进行全系统模拟。最后，一个最佳的探测器设计将被开发成符合探测器阵列和成像实验将被执行，以证明其能力。公共卫生关系：在临床上，对于人类成像，当前一代临床PET扫描仪的有限空间分辨率和灵敏度导致小乳腺肿瘤的检测和量化减少。通过开发具有高分辨率和灵敏度的专用乳腺扫描仪，以及生成完整的断层图像，将有助于早期乳腺癌的检测和分期。因此，开发一种专用的TOF乳腺扫描仪有可能对乳腺癌患者的治疗产生重大影响。