Frontiers in Ultrasonic Imaging for Cancer Diagnosis

Robert C. Waag, PhD

Arthur Gould Yates Professor of Engineering

Departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Radiology, and Rochester Center for Biomedical Ultrasound, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY

Ultrasonic imaging is now being widely used to diagnose cancer but current research has the potential to extend the utility of ultrasonic imaging in this application. The present use of ultrasonic imaging takes advantage of the nonionizing nature of low level acoustic waves, different mechanical properties of soft tissues, and advances in instrumentation. Limitations, however, arise from commonly employed one-dimensional transducer arrays, lack of correction for aberration in the propagation path, and the qualitative character of the images. Research to overcome these limitations includes development of two-dimensional arrays, adaptive beam formation with aberration correction, and quantitative image reconstruction algorithms that extend beyond the weak scattering approximation. Available results demonstrate the promise of this research to extend ultrasonic technology to improved diagnosis as well as treatment monitoring in the area cancer.