Intra-subject spatial changes in the optical properties of the female breast: A preliminary two-subject study

Abstract

The spatial dependence of the optical properties of the female breast was investigated in the wavelength range 600–1000 nm using a fully automated system for time-resolved reflectance spectroscopy. Both absorption and reduced scattering spectra of the breast of two healthy volunteers, having different ages (24 and 44 years), were measured at eight different angular positions (0°, 45°, 90°, 135°, 180°, 225°, 270°, 315°), and age-related changes in the optical properties of breast were investigated. Both absorption and scattering properties change remarkably as a function of position. They also differ for the two subjects of different age. The best-fit of breast spectra with the combination of the absorption spectra of water, lipid, oxy-, and deoxyhemoglobin related the observed changes to the heterogeneous distribution of the main tissue constituents in the breast. The reduced scattering spectra were interpreted based on approximate Mie theory, which provides structural information about the tissue.