Quantitative hemoglobin tomography with diffuse near-infrared spectroscopy: Pilot results in the breast

The authors describe what is, to the best of their knowledge, the first quantitative hemoglobin concentration images of the female breast that were formed with model-based re-construction of near-infrared intensity-modulated tomographic datal The results in 11 patients, including two with breast tumors with pathologic correlation, are summarized. Hemoglobin concentration appears to correlate with tumor vascularity without the need for exogenous contrast material and thereby has intrinsic diagnostic value.