MARIA M4: clinical evaluation of a prototype ultrawideband radar scanner for breast cancer detection

A microwave imaging system has been developed as a clinical diagnostic tool operating in the 3- to 8-GHz region using multistatic data collection. A total of 86 patients recruited from a symptomatic breast care clinic were scanned with a prototype design. The resultant three-dimensional images have been compared blind with available ultrasound and mammogram images to determine the detection rate. Images show the location of the strongest signal, and this corresponded in both older and younger women, with sensitivity of >74%, which was found to be maintained in dense breasts. The pathway from clinical prototype to clinical evaluation is outlined. (C) The Authors. Published by SPIE under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Distribution or reproduction of this work in whole or in part requires full attribution of the original publication, including its DOI.