Breast Tumor Diagnosis Using Finite-Element Modeling Based on Clinical in vivo Elastographic Data

Abstract

Objectives: This study exploited finite-element modeling (FEM) to simulate breast tissue multicompression during ultrasound elastography to classify breast tumors based on their nonlinear biomechanical properties. Methods: Numeric simulations were first calculated by using 3-dimensional (3D) virtual models with an assumed tumor's geometric dimensions but with actual material properties to test and validate the FEM. Further numeric simulations were used to construct 3D models based on in vivo experimental data to verify our models. The models were designed for each individual in vivo case, emphasizing the geometry, position, and biomechanical properties of the breast tissue. At different compression levels, tissue strains were analyzed between the tumors and the background normal tissues to explore their nonlinearity and classify the tumor type. Tumor classification parameters were deduced by using a power-law relationship between the applied compressive forces and strain differences. Results: Classification parameters were compared between benign and malignant tumors, for which they were found to be statistically significant in classifying the tumor types (P