Evaluating spectral performance for quantitative contrast-enhanced breast CT with a GaAs based photon counting detector: a simulation approach.

IF 1.3 Q3 RADIOLOGY, NUCLEAR MEDICINE & MEDICAL IMAGING
Bahaa Ghammraoui, Muhammad Usman Ghani, Stephen J Glick
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Quantitative contrast-enhanced breast computed tomography (CT) has the potential to improve the diagnosis and management of breast cancer. Traditional CT methods using energy-integrated detectors and dual-exposure images with different incident spectra for material discrimination can increase patient radiation dose and be susceptible to motion artifacts and spectral resolution loss. Photon Counting Detectors (PCDs) offer a promising alternative approach, enabling acquisition of multiple energy levels in a single exposure and potentially better energy resolution. Gallium arsenide (GaAs) is particularly promising for breast PCD-CT due to its high quantum efficiency and reduction of fluorescence x-rays escaping the pixel within the breast imaging energy range. In this study, the spectral performance of a GaAs PCD for quantitative iodine contrast-enhanced breast CT was evaluated. A GaAs detector with a pixel size of 100μm, a thickness of 500μm was simulated. Simulations were performed using cylindrical phantoms of varying diameters (10 cm, 12 cm, and 16 cm) with different concentrations and locations of iodine inserts, using incident spectra of 50, 55, and 60 kVp with 2 mm of added aluminum filtration and and a mean glandular dose of 10 mGy. We accounted for the effects of beam hardening and energy detector response using TIGRE CT open-source software and the publicly available Photon Counting Toolkit (PcTK). Material-specific images of the breast phantom were produced using both projection and image-based material decomposition methods, and iodine component images were used to estimate iodine intake. Accuracy and precision of the proposed methods for estimating iodine concentration in breast CT images were assessed for different material decomposition methods, incident spectra, and breast phantom thicknesses. The results showed that both the beam hardening effect and imperfection in the detector response had a significant impact on performance in terms of Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE), precision, and accuracy of estimating iodine intake in the breast. Furthermore, the study demonstrated the effectiveness of both material decomposition methods in making accurate and precise iodine concentration predictions using a GaAs-based photon counting breast CT system, with better performance when applying the projection-based material decomposition approach. The study highlights the potential of GaAs-based photon counting breast CT systems as viable alternatives to traditional imaging methods in terms of material decomposition and iodine concentration estimation, and proposes phantoms and figures of merit to assess their performance.

使用基于砷化镓的光子计数探测器评估定量对比增强乳腺 CT 的光谱性能:模拟方法。
定量对比增强乳腺计算机断层扫描(CT)有望改善乳腺癌的诊断和管理。传统方法使用能量积分探测器和不同入射光谱的双曝光图像进行物质鉴别,会增加患者的辐射剂量,并容易产生运动伪影和光谱分辨率损失。光子计数探测器(PCD)提供了一种很有前途的替代方法,可在一次曝光中获取多个能级,并可能获得更好的能量分辨率。砷化镓(GaAs)的量子效率高,可减少在乳腺成像能量范围内从像素中逸出的荧光 X 射线,因此在乳腺 PCD-CT 方面尤其具有发展前景。本研究评估了用于定量碘对比增强乳腺 CT 的砷化镓 PCD 的光谱性能。模拟了像素尺寸为 100 微米、厚度为 500 微米的砷化镓探测器。模拟使用了不同直径(10 厘米、12 厘米和 16 厘米)、不同浓度和位置的碘插入物的圆柱形模型,使用了 50、55 和 60 kVp 的入射光谱,并添加了 2 毫米的铝过滤层和一个相当于平均腺体剂量 (MGD) 约为 10 mGy 的照射水平。我们使用 TIGRE CT 开源软件和公开可用的光子计数工具包 (PcTK),考虑了光束硬化和能量探测器响应的影响。使用投影法和基于图像的材料分解法生成了乳房的特定材料图像,碘成分图像用于估算碘摄入量。针对不同的材料分解方法、入射光谱和乳房厚度,评估了拟议方法估算乳房 CT 图像中碘浓度的准确度和精确度。
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来源期刊
Biomedical Physics & Engineering Express
Biomedical Physics & Engineering Express RADIOLOGY, NUCLEAR MEDICINE & MEDICAL IMAGING-
CiteScore
2.80
自引率
0.00%
发文量
153
期刊介绍: BPEX is an inclusive, international, multidisciplinary journal devoted to publishing new research on any application of physics and/or engineering in medicine and/or biology. Characterized by a broad geographical coverage and a fast-track peer-review process, relevant topics include all aspects of biophysics, medical physics and biomedical engineering. Papers that are almost entirely clinical or biological in their focus are not suitable. The journal has an emphasis on publishing interdisciplinary work and bringing research fields together, encompassing experimental, theoretical and computational work.
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