Terahertz spectroscopy of breast tumors

Using a portable terahertz pulsed spectrometer developed by TeraView Ltd. the complex refractive indices of ex vivo breast tumors were measured through transmission in the range of 0.1-3 THz. Twenty samples were measured at room temperature and it is shown here that the use of terahertz pulsed spectroscopy (TPS) enables us to distinguish between normal adipose tissue, normal fibrous tissue and breast tumors due to the higher water content and structural differences found in tumors. Comparisons are made between the results found using TPS and the classification of the tissue samples given through histology performed at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge. Further measurements have been taken at low temperatures (down to 200 K) to remove the dominant absorption caused by water in an attempt to identify other differences, such as the cell and protein density, between normal breast tissue and tumors observable in the THz range.