Imperial College London researchers are combining ultrasound with supercomputing to detect breast cancer in a new project, Quantitative Ultrasound Stochastic Tomography (QUSTom).
The researchers are adapting for medical imaging the advanced geophysical technique of full-waveform inversion (FWI), which is commonly used to model images of the inside of the Earth.
To obtain the images, researchers will develop mathematical algorithms that can show the image of the patient's tissue and its associated uncertainty, pixel by pixel. It also incorporates multimodal imaging and 3D imaging, which is an unprecedented combination in ultrasound breast imaging.
The technology, which uses no radiation, is expected to offer superior image quality, better monitoring of tumors, and other benefits. The researchers hope the imaging will complement or replace current techniques, such as mammograms.
Imperial will work with its spinoff FrontWave Imaging, as well as Karlsruher Institut fur Technologie, Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), Arctur, and Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC).
