KR102404792B1 - Apparatus and method for diagnosing breast cancer - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer and a method for diagnosing breast cancer for diagnosing a breast cancer lesion occurring inside the breast. a signal generator for generating a signal; an optical diagnosis unit irradiating infrared rays to a diagnosis target using the optical signal, detecting infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target, and generating a detection signal; a converter converting the detection signal into a first digital signal and converting the optical signal into a second digital signal; and a signal processing unit calculating a signal magnitude difference and a phase difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal by comparing the first digital signal and the second digital signal; may include

Description

Breast cancer diagnosis apparatus and method for diagnosing breast cancer

The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for diagnosing breast cancer, and more particularly, to an apparatus and method for diagnosing breast cancer for diagnosing a breast cancer lesion occurring inside the breast.

Recently, with the advent of the aging population and the improvement of people's living standards, interest in early diagnosis and treatment of diseases to lead a healthy life is on the rise. As such, it has become the most important factor threatening public health.

According to the Cancer Registration Headquarters under the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs, it is estimated that more than 130,000 new cancer patients occur every year in Korea. is 300.0 cases, and the number of women is 248.2 cases.

In addition, when classified by type of cancer, gastric cancer, lung cancer, liver cancer, and colorectal cancer, which account for 66% of all cancers in men, have the highest incidence in that order, whereas in women, the incidence of cancer is higher than breast cancer, thyroid cancer, and thyroid cancer. In the order of gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, and lung cancer, breast cancer is found to be more common than the four major cancers.

As such, in the case of women, early diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer, which has the highest incidence, is an important factor that must be preceded in order to lead a healthy life for women.

Meanwhile, a breast cancer diagnosis apparatus using mammography, which is mainly used for diagnosing breast cancer in asymptomatic women among breast cancer diagnosis methods, detects lesions existing inside the breast using X-rays.

However, the conventional breast cancer diagnosis apparatus has a problem in that it is difficult to detect a breast mass, which is an important factor in diagnosing breast cancer, because the lesion in the region of interest overlaps with the normal tissue because the result of imaging using X-rays is a two-dimensional image.

As described above, the two-dimensional image generated by the conventional breast cancer diagnosis apparatus has a problem in that the accuracy and discrimination power of the two-dimensional image are low, so that an erroneous breast cancer diagnosis is high.

Specifically, because the difference between the X-ray absorption rates for breast tissue and cancer is very small, it is difficult to select them, so that there is a high probability that a breast false positive or a false negative will occur. In fact, the number of false positive breast diagnoses in the medical diagnosis field has reached 30%.

As described above, the conventional breast cancer diagnosis apparatus has a low diagnosis accuracy, so in the case of a breast false negative that is read as normal or positive even though there is breast cancer, the breast cancer is overlooked, giving the patient false peace of mind and making an error of neglecting the breast cancer. It threatens the health of patients and at the same time is the main cause of legal problems caused by medical accidents.

In order to solve this problem, a method of diagnosing an object using a diffuse optical tomography (DOT) method may be proposed. However, the conventional DOT method requires a number of devices in the process of processing the diagnosed analog information, and in particular, it spans several channels. In order to diagnose a target, there is a problem in that the size of the device must be increased as much as the number of channels. In addition, a plurality of analog information is generated in the process of diagnosing a target across multiple channels, and processing each of these information takes a long time, and the analog information is vulnerable to surrounding noise due to the nature of the analog information. It was difficult to produce results.

Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2016-0007799 (published on January 21, 2016)

An apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer and a method for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention aims to reduce the size of the breast cancer diagnosis apparatus by diagnosing a diagnosis target with a small number of devices.

Another object of the apparatus and method for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention is to quickly process information obtained by diagnosing a diagnosis target and to reduce the influence of surrounding noise.

In order to solve the above problems, an apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a signal generator for generating an optical signal for DOT (Diffuse Optical Tomography) diagnosis; an optical diagnosis unit irradiating infrared rays to a diagnosis target using the optical signal, detecting infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target, and generating a detection signal; a converter converting the detection signal into a first digital signal and converting the optical signal into a second digital signal; and a signal processing unit configured to compare the first digital signal and the second digital signal to calculate a signal magnitude difference and a phase difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal; may include

The signal generating unit may generate the optical signal and provide it to the optical diagnosis unit and the signal processing unit together.

The optical diagnosis unit may include: a light source unit for irradiating infrared of a frequency corresponding to the optical signal to the diagnosis target; and a detector configured to detect infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target and generate the detection signal. may include

The optical diagnostic unit may generate a detection signal by irradiating infrared rays to the diagnosis target through at least two light sources and detecting a plurality of infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target.

The converter receives the detection signal, converts it into the first digital signal, and provides the first converter to the signal processor; and a second converter that receives the optical signal, converts it into the second digital signal, and provides the converted signal to the signal processing unit. may include

The signal processing unit may analyze the first digital signal and the second digital signal using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) method.

The signal processing unit may analyze a ratio of the signal magnitudes of the first digital signal and the second digital signal, and calculate a signal magnitude difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal through the ratio of the analyzed signal magnitudes have.

a storage unit for storing information on the signal magnitude difference and the phase difference; may further include.

In addition, in order to solve the above problem, a breast cancer diagnosis method according to an embodiment of the present invention is performed by a diffuse optical tomography (DOT) type breast cancer diagnosis apparatus, and includes the steps of: generating an optical signal; generating a detection signal by irradiating infrared rays to the diagnosis target using the optical signal and detecting the infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target; converting the detection signal into a first digital signal and converting the optical signal into a second digital signal; and comparing the first digital signal and the second digital signal to calculate a signal magnitude difference and a phase difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal.

The method may further include storing the calculated signal magnitude difference and phase difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal.

The generating of the detection signal may include irradiating infrared rays to the diagnosis target through at least two or more channels and detecting a plurality of infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target to generate a detection signal.

The breast cancer diagnosis apparatus and breast cancer diagnosis method according to an embodiment of the present invention have an effect of reducing the size of the breast cancer diagnosis apparatus by diagnosing a diagnosis target with a small number of devices.

In addition, the breast cancer diagnosis apparatus and breast cancer diagnosis method according to an embodiment of the present invention may rapidly process information obtained by diagnosing a diagnosis target.

In addition, the breast cancer diagnosis apparatus and breast cancer diagnosis method according to an embodiment of the present invention have the effect of improving accuracy of results by reducing the influence of ambient noise in deriving a diagnosis result.

However, the effects that can be achieved according to an embodiment of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned are those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs from the description below. can be clearly understood by

1 is a view for explaining a part of an apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a flowchart illustrating another part of an apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a flowchart illustrating a method for diagnosing breast cancer according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Since the present invention can have various changes and can have various embodiments, specific embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and will be described in detail through the detailed description. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to specific embodiments, and it should be understood that the present invention includes all modifications, equivalents and substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the present invention.

In describing the present invention, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known technology may unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention, the detailed description thereof will be omitted. In addition, numbers (eg, first, second, etc.) used in the description process of the present specification are only identification symbols for distinguishing one component from other components.

In addition, in this specification, when a component is referred to as “connected” or “connected” with another component, the component may be directly connected or directly connected to the other component, but in particular It should be understood that, unless there is a description to the contrary, it may be connected or connected through another element in the middle.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments according to the technical spirit of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

1 is a view for explaining a part of an apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 , an apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a signal generating unit 100 , an optical diagnosis unit 200 , and a converting unit 300 .

The signal generating unit 100 , the optical diagnosis unit 200 , the converting unit 300 , and the signal processing unit 400 and storage unit 500 to be described below are used for diagnosis for determining the presence or absence of a lesion inside the diagnosis target B . It may be configured as part of the device.

The breast cancer diagnosis apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention may be a device for diagnosing the diagnosis target (B) using a diffuse optical tomography (DOT) method. The diagnosis target (B) may refer to an object in which a phantom, a sample tissue, a human breast, etc. are specified through the breast cancer diagnosis apparatus.

The signal generator 100 may generate an optical signal necessary for irradiating light to the diagnosis target B.

The optical signal may be a radio frequency signal having a constant wavelength. For example, the optical signal may be an analog signal consisting of a wavelength of 785 nm, 800 nm, or 850 nm.

The optical signal generated by the signal generating unit 100 may be provided to both the optical diagnosis unit 200 and the converting unit 300 . The optical signal generated by the signal generating unit 100 may be branched and provided to the optical diagnosis unit 200 and the conversion unit 300 , or may be respectively generated with the same frequency and phase to be transmitted to the optical diagnosis unit 200 and the optical diagnosis unit 200 . Each may be provided to the converter 300 .

The optical diagnosis unit 200 may generate a detection signal by irradiating infrared rays to the diagnosis object B using an optical signal and detecting infrared rays passing through the diagnosis object B. FIG.

In more detail, the optical diagnosis unit 200 generates a detection signal by detecting the light source unit 210 irradiating infrared rays of a frequency corresponding to the optical signal to the diagnosis object B and the infrared rays passing through the diagnosis object B. It may include a detection unit 220 .

Also, the optical diagnosis unit 200 may generate a detection signal by irradiating infrared rays to the diagnosis subject B through at least two or more channels, and detecting a plurality of infrared rays passing through the diagnosis subject B. FIG.

That is, the light source unit 210 may include a plurality of light sources arranged to have a predetermined pattern, and each of the plurality of light sources may modulate the above-described optical signal to irradiate infrared rays to the diagnosis target (B). The plurality of light sources may irradiate light to the diagnosis subject B according to an arrangement position or an angle toward the diagnosis subject B, respectively.

Infrared rays irradiated to the diagnosis object B are absorbed or scattered while passing through the diagnosis object B to reach the detection unit 220 .

The detector 220 may receive and detect a plurality of infrared rays that have passed through the diagnosis target B, and may generate a detection signal. The detection unit 220 may be positioned to face the light source unit 210 with respect to the diagnosis target B in order to receive the infrared rays irradiated from the light source unit 210 .

The detection signal may be an analog signal in which the infrared ray irradiated from the light source unit 210 passes through the diagnosis object B and the frequency and phase thereof are modified. Accordingly, by comparing the detection signal generated by the detection unit 220 and the optical signal generated by the signal generation unit 100 , it is possible to check the inside of the diagnosis target B.

When the light source unit 210 irradiates a plurality of infrared rays through a plurality of light sources, the detection unit 220 may also include a plurality of optical sensors, and the infrared rays received by each optical sensor are detected as a detection signal having a constant frequency and phase. can be converted In this case, each optical sensor may generate a plurality of detection signals and provide them to the conversion unit 300 to be described below.

The converter 300 may convert the detection signal into a first digital signal and convert the optical signal into a second digital signal. In more detail, the converter 300 may include a first converter 310 that receives the detection signal and converts it into a first digital signal, and a second converter 320 that receives the optical signal and converts it into a second digital signal. can

The first converter 310 and the second converter 320 may be analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) that receive an analog signal and convert it into a digital signal.

2 is a flowchart illustrating another part of an apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2 , the breast cancer diagnosis apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a signal processing unit 400 and a storage unit 500 in addition to the signal generating unit 100 , the optical diagnosis unit 200 , and the converting unit 300 . may include

The first converter 310 of the converter 300 may receive the detection signal from the optical diagnosis unit 200 and convert the detection signal into a first digital signal. In addition, the converted first digital signal may be provided to the signal processing unit 400 .

The second converter 310 of the converter 300 may receive the optical signal from the signal generator 100 and convert the optical signal into a second digital signal. In addition, the converted second digital signal may be provided to the signal processing unit 400 .

When the optical diagnostic unit 200 generates a plurality of detection signals through a plurality of channels, each detection signal may be sequentially provided to the first converter 310 to be converted into a plurality of first digital signals.

The signal processing unit 400 may compare the first digital signal and the second digital signal to calculate a signal magnitude difference and a phase difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal.

In more detail, the signal processing unit 400 may analyze the first digital signal and the second digital signal using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) method.

Also, the signal processing unit 400 may analyze a signal magnitude ratio of the first digital signal and the second digital signal and calculate a signal magnitude difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal based on the analyzed signal magnitude ratio.

When the optical diagnostic unit 200 generates a plurality of detection signals through a plurality of channels, the signal processing unit 400 converts the plurality of first digital signals into which the plurality of detection signals are converted to the second digital signals into which the optical signals are converted. A plurality of comparison results may be generated by comparing each with . Each of the plurality of comparison results may include information on a signal magnitude difference and a phase difference.

Information on the signal magnitude difference and the phase difference generated in this way may be stored in the storage unit 500 . The storage unit 500 may be configured as a memory for storing digital information, and may be provided as data for diagnosing breast cancer by storing a plurality of inputted information in an array form.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a method for diagnosing breast cancer according to another embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 3 , the method for diagnosing breast cancer according to an embodiment of the present invention uses an optical signal generation step (S100), a detection signal generation step (S110), a detection signal and an optical signal conversion step (S120), and a converted digital signal. Thus, calculating the signal magnitude difference and the phase difference (S130) and the storing step (S140) may be included.

As described above, the optical signal generating step ( S100 ) may be a step in which the signal generating unit 100 generates a signal for optical diagnosis in the DOT type breast cancer diagnosis apparatus.

The detection signal generating step (S110) is a step in which the optical diagnosis unit 200 irradiates infrared rays to the diagnosis object B in response to the optical signal, detects the infrared rays that have passed through the diagnosis object B, and generates a detection signal. can

Here, if the photodiagnostic unit 200 irradiates infrared rays to the diagnosis target B through a plurality of light sources, each light source can be viewed as one channel, and a plurality of infrared rays transmitted through each diagnosis target B are emitted. Each detection may be performed to generate a plurality of detection signals.

In the detection signal and optical signal conversion step S120, the optical signal generated in the optical signal generation step S100 and the detection signal generated in the detection signal generation step S110 are converted into a first digital signal and a second digital signal, respectively. may be a step.

Calculating the signal magnitude difference and the phase difference ( S130 ) may be a step of calculating the signal magnitude difference and the phase difference between the two digital signals by analyzing and comparing the first digital signal and the second digital signal.

Thereafter, in the storing step ( S140 ), information on the signal magnitude difference and the phase difference may be stored in the storage unit 500 of the breast cancer diagnosis apparatus.

As mentioned above, although embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains can practice the present invention in other specific forms without changing its technical spirit or essential features. You can understand that there is Therefore, it should be understood that the embodiments described above are illustrative in all respects and not restrictive.

100: signal generating unit 200: optical diagnosis unit
300: conversion unit 400: signal processing unit
500: storage

Claims (11)

a signal generator for generating an optical signal for a DOT (Diffuse Optical Tomography) type diagnosis;
an optical diagnosis unit irradiating infrared rays to a diagnosis target using the optical signal, detecting infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target, and generating a detection signal;
a converter converting the detection signal into a first digital signal and converting the optical signal into a second digital signal; and
a signal processing unit configured to compare the first digital signal and the second digital signal to calculate a signal magnitude difference and a phase difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal;
The conversion unit,
a first converter that receives the detection signal, converts it into the first digital signal, and provides it to the signal processing unit; and
and a second converter that directly receives the optical signal that has not passed through the diagnosis target, converts it into the second digital signal, and provides the converted optical signal to the signal processing unit. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal generator
The apparatus for diagnosing breast cancer, wherein the optical signal is generated and provided to the optical diagnosis unit and the signal processing unit. The method of claim 1, wherein the optical diagnosis unit
a light source unit for irradiating infrared with a frequency corresponding to the optical signal to the diagnosis target; and
a detection unit that detects infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target and generates the detection signal; Breast cancer diagnosis apparatus comprising a. The method of claim 1, wherein the optical diagnosis unit
A breast cancer diagnosis apparatus, characterized in that the detection signal is generated by irradiating infrared rays to the diagnosis target through at least two light sources and detecting a plurality of infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target. delete The method of claim 1, wherein the signal processing unit
A breast cancer diagnosis apparatus, characterized in that the first digital signal and the second digital signal are analyzed using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) method. The method of claim 1, wherein the signal processing unit
Analyzing a ratio of the signal magnitudes of the first digital signal and the second digital signal, and calculating a signal magnitude difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal through the ratio of the analyzed signal magnitudes Breast cancer diagnosis device. According to claim 1,
a storage unit for storing information on the signal magnitude difference and the phase difference; A breast cancer diagnosis device further comprising a. A method for diagnosing breast cancer by a DOT (Diffuse Optical Tomography) method for diagnosing breast cancer, the method comprising:
generating an optical signal;
generating a detection signal by irradiating infrared rays to the diagnosis target using the optical signal and detecting the infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target;
converting the detection signal into a first digital signal and converting the optical signal into a second digital signal; and
Comparing the first digital signal and the second digital signal to calculate a signal magnitude difference and a phase difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal,
The converting step is
a first conversion step of receiving the detection signal, converting it into the first digital signal, and providing it to a signal processing unit; and
and a second conversion step of directly receiving an optical signal that has not passed through the diagnosis target, converting the optical signal into the second digital signal, and providing the signal to the signal processing step. 10. The method of claim 9,
The method of diagnosing breast cancer further comprising: storing the calculated signal magnitude difference and phase difference between the first digital signal and the second digital signal. The method of claim 9, wherein the generating of the detection signal comprises:
A method for diagnosing breast cancer, comprising: irradiating infrared rays to the diagnosis target through at least two or more channels, and detecting a plurality of infrared rays passing through the diagnosis target to generate a detection signal.

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