Photon-Counting Spiral Breast CT: Dose-Efficient 3D Imaging

nu:view breast CT allows for high-resolution 3D imaging without breast compression, combining cutting-edge imaging capabilities with patient experience. But what about the radiation dose?

In a retrospective study with 1657 breast CT examinations (829 patients), it was shown that radiation exposure of an examination using spiral breast CT equipped with a photon-counting detector [nu:view system] was lower than in diagnostic mammography and cone-beam breast CT. While other dose studies only examine phantoms, this is the first patient-specific dose study using real breast CT patient data from a large patient cohort.

After a dedicated breast tissue segmentation, a Monte Carlo simulation for dose estimation was performed and mathematical models which allow for an estimation of the dose based on morphological features were applied. Breast length was found to be an easy-to-use feature, which could be used by clinicians to adjust the scan settings to further minimize dose levels.

Full publication (paywall article):

Shim, S, Kolditz, D, Steiding, C, et al. Radiation dose estimates based on Monte Carlo simulation for spiral breast computed tomography imaging in a large cohort of patients. Med Phys. 2023; 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1002/mp.16211