Graphical user interface for breast tomosynthesis reconstructions: An application using anisotropic diffusion filtering

Abstract

Breast tomosynthesis is a three-dimensional x-ray imaging technique of the breast that on the basis of a set of angular projections taken over a limited arc around the breast can provide tomographic images at variable heights. Nowadays, breast tomosynthesis is Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved for use in breast cancer screening as there are few clinical systems available and under development for use in patient examinations. In parallel with the development of breast tomosynthesis systems, optimization work is actively performed, related to image acquisition geometries and reconstruction algorithms in general. The Biomedical Technology Unit at the University of Patras, Greece, has a 25 years experience in developing and optimizing image acquisition geometries and reconstruction algorithms with focus on the specific field of breast tomosynthesis. As a result, reconstruction algorithms combined with different filters that can be used prior or after the reconstruction of the image in order to remove the noise have been developed. To facilitate further research in this field, we developed a platform with a Graphical User Interface dedicated to Breast Tomosynthesis. In this study, the platform has been exploited to optimize the parameters of a nonlinear anisotropic diffusion filter used in a breast tomosynthesis application. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014.