Applicability of active infrared thermography for screening of human breast: a numerical study

Abstract

Active infrared thermography is a fast, painless, noncontact, and noninvasive imaging method, complementary to mammography, ultrasound, and magnetic resonance imaging methods for early diagnosis of breast cancer. This technique plays an important role in early detection of breast cancer to women of all ages, including pregnant or nursing women, with different sizes of breast, irrespective of either fatty or dense breast. This proposed complementary technique makes use of infrared emission emanating from the breast. Emanating radiations from the surface of the breast under test are detected with an infrared camera to map the thermal gradients over it, in order to reveal hidden tumors inside it. One of the reliable active infrared thermographic technique, linear frequency modulated thermal wave imaging is adopted to detect tumors present inside the breast. Further, phase and amplitude images are constructed using frequency and time-domain data analysis schemes. Obtained results show the potential of the proposed technique for early diagnosis of breast cancer in fatty as well as dense breasts.