Multi-modality fusion of CT, 3D ultrasound, and tracked strain images for breast irradiation planning

Breast irradiation significantly reduces the risk of recurrence of cancer. There is growing evidence suggesting that irradiation of only the involved area of the breast, partial breast irradiation (PBI), is as effective as whole breast irradiation. Benefits of PBI include shortened treatment time, and perhaps fewer side effects as less tissue is treated. However, these benefits cannot be realized without precise and accurate localization of the lumpectomy cavity. Several studies have shown that accurate delineation of the cavity in CT scans is very challenging and the delineated volumes differ dramatically over time and among users. In this paper, we propose utilizing 3D ultrasound (3D-US) and tracked strain images as complementary modalities to reduce uncertainties associated with current CT planning workflow. We present the early version of an integrated system that fuses 3D-US and real-time strain images. For the first time, we employ tracking information to reduce the noise in calculation of strain image by choosing the properly compressed frames and to position the strain image within the ultrasound volume. Using this system, we provide the tools to retrieve additional information from 3D-US and strain image alongside the CT scan. We have preliminarily evaluated our proposed system in a step-by-step fashion using a breast phantom and clinical experiments.