Water and lipid content of breast tissue measured by six-wavelength time-domain diffuse optical spectroscopy

Abstract

Significance: The water and lipid content of normal breast tissue showed mammary gland characteristics with less influence from the chest wall using six-wavelength time-domain diffuse optical spectroscopy (TD-DOS) in a reflectance geometry.Aim: To determine the depth sensitivity of a six-wavelength TD-DOS system and evaluate whether the optical parameters in normal breast tissue can distinguish dense breasts from nondense breasts.Approach: Measurements were performed in normal breast tissue of 37 breast cancer patients. We employed a six-wavelength TD-DOS system to measure the water and lipid content in addition to the hemoglobin concentration. The breast density in mammography and optical parameters were then compared. Results:The depth sensitivity of the system for water and lipid content was estimated to be ∼15 mm. Our findings suggest that the influence of the chest wall on the water content is weaker than that on the total hemoglobin concentration. In data with evaluation conditions, the water content was significantly higher (p < 0.001) and the lipid content was significantly lower (p < 0.001) in dense breast tissue. The water and lipid content exhibited a high sensitivity and specificity to distinguish dense from non-dense breasts in receiver-operating-characteristic curve analysis.Conclusions: With less influence from the chest wall, the water and lipid content of normal breast tissue measured by a reflectance six-wavelength TD-DOS system, together with ultrasonography, can be applied to distinguish dense from non-dense breasts.

Monitoring the skin structure during edema in vivo with spatially resolved diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

“… 10 , 11 Near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and imaging allow water content assessment in deeper layers (dermis and hypodermis). 3 , 12 , 13 For instance, in heart failure patients, peripheral edema was analyzed with short-wave NIR imaging. 2 Cutaneous edema induced by histamine application was studied with diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), 9 , 14 Raman fiber probe, 9 and multispectral NIR imaging.…”

“…For instance, during heart failure, 1 physical examination using the “pitting scale” and weighing the patient remains the most useful approaches for assessing edematous syndrome; however, these methods are subjective and insufficient 2 . Assessment of water and lipids content in breast cancer tissues can provide important information about the characteristics of a tumor, 3 as the high water content in a tumor indicates edema and increased cellularity 4 , 5 . Likewise, the measurement of hydration in different skin layers is interesting for dermatology and cosmetology: 6 for instance, water content in the dermis is a marker of changes in the elastic properties of the skin, 7 and hydration of the stratum corneum is indicative of its barrier function 8 .…”

“…Confocal Raman and THz spectroscopy are mainly applied for studying the skin’s upper (epidermis) layer 10 , 11 . Near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and imaging allow water content assessment in deeper layers (dermis and hypodermis) 3 , 12 , 13 . For instance, in heart failure patients, peripheral edema was analyzed with short-wave NIR imaging 2 .…”