Co-registered spectral photoacoustic tomography and ultrasonography of breast cancer

Many breast cancer patients receive neoadjuvant treatment to reduce tumor size and enable breast conserving therapy. Most imaging methods used to monitor response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy or hormone therapy depend on overall gross tumor morphology and size measurements, which may not be sensitive or specific, despite tumor response on a cellular level. A more sensitive and specific method of detecting response to therapy might allow earlier adjustments in treatment, and thus result in better outcomes while avoiding unnecessary morbidity. We developed an imaging system that combines spectral photoacoustic tomography and ultrasonography to predict breast neoadjuvant therapeutic response based on blood volume and blood oxygenation contrast. The system consists of a tunable dye laser pumped by a Nd:YAG laser, a commercial ultrasound imaging system (Philips iU22), and a multichannel data acquisition system which displays co-registered photoacoustic and ultrasound images in real time. Early studies demonstrate functional imaging capabilities, such as oxygen saturation and total concentration of hemoglobin, in addition to ultrasonography of tumor morphology. Further study is needed to determine if the co-registered photoacoustic tomography and ultrasonography system may provide an accurate tool to assess treatment efficacy by monitoring tumor response in vivo.