Low-power RF breast health monitor

加拿大癌症协会估计，“大约每9名加拿大妇女中就有1人在其一生中患上乳腺癌，每30人中就有1人死于乳腺癌”。如果癌症在早期被诊断出来，康复的机会会大大提高。目前，标准的乳腺癌筛查方法是X射线乳房摄影术。它的缺点包括使用电离辐射和痛苦的扫描。在过去的二十年里，微波技术在乳腺癌检测中的潜力得到了研究。波波维奇教授领导的研究小组开发了一种微波雷达时域系统;这是第一个进入临床试验的同类系统。该系统提供了优于替代频域的优势，包括更快的扫描时间和更小外形尺寸的更具成本效益的设备解决方案的潜力。该系统的目标是具有成本效益的，长期的，频繁的（每月）患者监测，允许及时观察早期异常发展。Popovich教授与ADI公司签订了一项研究协议。(ADI)进一步开发可穿戴式微波乳腺癌检测装置。ADI公司及其子公司Analog Devices（AD）Canada Ltd是设计和制造用于电子设备的模拟、混合信号和DSP集成电路的全球领导者。他们的主要高投资研究领域包括下一代电子和传感器技术。AD Canada，Ltd拥有70多名工程师。多伦多办事处成立于1998年，拥有一个以医疗保健为重点的团队，该团队最近才启动了一项针对微波成像的研究途径。该研究的成果将通过新的和改进的硬件设计以及相关信号处理的算法开发使AD Canada受益。虽然这些方法将针对乳腺成像的具体应用而开发，但这些原则将使AD Canada的研发团队能够在微波成像领域发展和进步，适用于医疗保健、安全和无损检测。我们预计这将在加拿大创造新的就业机会，并为AD Canada的业务带来竞争优势。来自AD Canada、ADI和麦吉尔的研究人员每两周举行一次会议来规划该项目，AD Canada也参与了研究提案的起草。AD Canada和ADI的专家访问了麦吉尔，对当前的原型进行了演示。通过这些互动，合作伙伴已同意开发下一级实用系统，重点关注硬件和信号处理方面。鉴于ADI公司微波成像事业部在加拿大拥有强大的企业和制造实力，我们请求将ADI公司马萨诸塞州研发总部为本项目提供的现金和实物捐助视为符合CRD项目的条件。

The Canadian Cancer Society estimates that "about 1 in 9 Canadian women is expected to develop breast cancer during her lifetime and 1 in 30 will die from it". The chance of recovery is greatly improved if the cancer is diagnosed during its early stage. Currently, the standard breast cancer screening method is x-ray mammography. Its drawbacks include the use of ionizing radiation and painful scans. Over the past two decades, microwave technologies have been researched for their potential in breast cancer detection. The research group led by Prof. Popovich has developed a microwave-radar time-domain system; it was the first of its kind to reach clinical trials. This system offers advantages over the alternative, frequency-domain, including the potential for faster scan times and more cost-effective equipment solutions with smaller form-factor. The goal of this system is cost-effective, long-term, frequent (monthly) patient monitoring, allowing for timely observation of early-stage abnormality development. Prof. Popovich has engaged in a research agreement with Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) to further develop a wearable microwave breast cancer detection unit. ADI and its subsidiary Analog Devices (AD) Canada Ltd, is a world leader in the design and manufacture of analog, mixed-signal, and DSP integrated circuits used in electronic equipment. Their main areas of high-investment research include technologies for next generation electronics & sensors. AD Canada, Ltd employs over 70 engineers. The Toronto office, established in 1998, hosts a healthcare-focused team, which has only recently initiated a research avenue targeting microwave imaging. The outcomes of the research will benefit AD Canada through new and improved hardware design as well as algorithm development for the related signal-processing. Although the methods will be developed for the specific application of breast imaging, the principles will allow AD Canada's R&D group to grow and advance in the domain of microwave imaging, applicable to healthcare, security and non-destructive testing. We expect this to generate new jobs in Canada and yield a competitive advantage to AD Canada's operations. Researchers from AD Canada, ADI and McGill have been holding biweekly meetings to plan the project, and AD Canada has been involved in drafting the research proposal. The AD Canada and ADI experts have visited McGill for demonstrations of the current prototype. Through these interactions, the partners have agreed to develop the next-level practical system, focusing on the hardware and signal-processing aspects. Given the strong corporate and manufacturing presence of Analog Devices microwave imaging division in Canada, we are requesting that the cash and in-kind contributions from ADI's R&D Headquarters in Massachusetts for this project be considered eligible for a CRD project.