Patent · US Expired

Non-invasive system for breast cancer detection

US5704355A · kind A · utility

192Cited by
12References
27Claims
0Family size

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateJun 21, 1995
Grant dateJan 6, 1998
Priority date
Expiry dateJun 21, 2015

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
  • CPC primaryA61B6/0435
  • WIPO fieldMedical technology
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A system for detecting an incipient tumor in living tissue such as that of a human breast in accordance with differences in relative dielectric characteristics. A generator produces a non-ionizing electromagnetic input wave of preselected frequency, usually exceeding three gigahertz, and that input wave is used to illuminate the living tissue, being effectively focused into a small, discrete volume within the tissue to develop a non-ionizing electromagnetic wave at that position. The illumination location is moved over a portion of the living tissue in a predetermined scanning pattern. Scattered signal returns collected from the living tissue are collected to develop a scattered return signal. The scattered return signal is employed to detect any anomaly, caused by differences in relative dielectric characteristics, that is indicative of the presence of a tumor in the scanned living tissue.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.