Thomas E. Price

Breast Volume Measurement of 248 Women Using Biostereometric Analysis

A study of volumes of the right and left breasts of 248 subjects was undertaken using biostereometric analysis. This measurement technique uses close-range stereophotogrammetry to characterize the shape of the breast and is noncontact, noninvasive, accurate, and rapid with respect to the subject involvement time. Volumes and volumetric differences between breast pairs were compared, using chi-square tests, with handedness, perception of breast size by each subject, age, and menstrual status. No significant relationship was found between the handedness of the subject and the larger breast volume. Several groups of subjects based on age and menstrual status were accurate in their perception of breast size difference. Analysis did not confirm the generally accepted clinical impression of left breast volume dominance. Although a size difference in breast pairs was documented, neither breast predominated.

Breast volume measurement of 598 women using biostereometric analysis.

A study of the volumes of the right and left breasts of 598 subjects was undertaken using biostereometric analysis. This measurement uses close-range stereophotogrammetry to characterize the shape of the breast, and is noncontact, noninvasive, accurate, and rapid with respect to the subject involvement time. Using chi-square tests, volumes and volumetric differences between breast pairs were compared with handedness, perception of breast size by each subject, age, and menstrual status. No significant relationship was found between the handedness, age, or menstrual status of the subject and the breast volume. Several groups of subjects were accurate in their perception of breast size difference. Analysis did confirm the generally accepted clinical impression of left-breast volume dominance. These results are shown to be consistent with those of a previous study using 248 women.

Validity and reliability of biostereometric measurement of the human female breast

A measurement technique has been developed for application in the area of noninvasive breast cancer detection. The measurement process involves the use of closerange stereophotogrammetry as a data acquisition device necessary for determination of breast volume and volume distribution. This report details the methodology used to acquire and analyze stereopair photographs necessary to document the validity and reliability of this application. The volume of a test object was determined by both water displacement and stereophotogrammetric analysis to estimate the precision of the proposed methodology. Additionally, the reliability component of the study was documented by analyzing variability of coordinates representing a series of locations marked on the surface of an irregularly shaped object. Both tests confirm that this stereometric analysis is a reliable and valid method of measurement and may be well suited for further development in the field of breast cancer detection.

FRACTAL TILINGS IN THE PLANE

Tilings have appeared in human activity since prehistoric times. They are used in the design of floor and wall coverings for cathedrals, commercial buildings, and personal dwellings. Mathematicians stucly the geometric structure of tilings. A checkerboard is an elementary example of a sinilarity tiling, one that is composed of smaller tiles (,rep tiles) of the same size, each having the same shape as the whole. Each rep tile in the checkerboard is the scaled and translated image of the entire board. For the checkerboard in FIGURE la, the lower left tile is the image of the checkerboard under

Orthogonal Polynomials for Nonclassical Weight Functions

In this paper we develop a technique for deriving orthogonal polynomials for a class of nonclassical weight functions from known orthogonal polynomials. Although the algorithms discussed here are not as general as the classical and more recently developed algorithms, they do provide an effective and simple method for generating such polynomials.

Reliability Of A Photogrammetric Determination Of The Breast-Thorax Boundary

The study of the human female breast for the presence of neoplastic lesions has been the major focus of our research. Close-range stereogrammetry has been used to produce digital as well as graphic representations (contour maps) of the breast under examination. Previous study of these maps has been used to evaluate single contours for the presence of aberrations (deviations from the convex hull) and to correlate these with clinically documented masses. The purpose of this paper is to report, in part, the development of a measurement strategy to quantify breast volume and volume distribution comparisons within our subject pool. More specifically, the data acquisition techniques and algorithms employed in defining the boundary between the breast and thorax of the subject are described. Special emphasis has been placed on the determination of validity and reliability of the boundary placement by the stereoplotter technicians. In addition, the application of this measurement process to documentation of the presence or absence of total volume and volume distribution differences existing in normal breasts and those containing benign or malignant lesions are discussed.

Pointwise error estimates for interpolation

Abstract Pointwise error estimates are obtained for polynomial interpolants in the roots and extrema of the Chebyshev polynomials of the first kind. These estimates are analogous to those derived by Henrici [2] for trigonometric polynomial interpolants.

The numerical approximation of analytic functions in the complex domain

In this paper we are concerned with the numerical approximation of analytic functions in the complex domain. This approach leads to an efficient technique for deriving an interpolation polynomial as well as a useful error analysis.

USE OF BIOSTEREOMETRIC ANALYSIS AS A SCREEN FOR BREAST CANCER

Biostereometric analysis, a photographic surface imaging technology that is noninvasive, was tested for its effectiveness in selecting breast pathology in a sample of 1000 female subjects, including 80 with cancers, 635 normals, and 285 with benign breast conditions. These individuals were recruited from the population of women undergoing routine mammographic examination. The project was designed specifically to determine whether biostereometric analysis could identify the individuals in the sample with malignant breast disease in the hope of providing information to aid in future development of a breast cancer screening protocol. The overall sensitivity of the method for cancers of all sizes was 76%. Biostereometric analysis was 85% sensitive for selection of cancers in the subjects over 50 years of age, and identified 80% (4 of 5) of the subjects with clinically confirmed breast cancers less than 1 cm in size. The method was 69% specific, but identified benign breast disease in only 51% of cases.

Biostereometric analysis for breast cancer detection

A measurement technique has been developed for noninvasive breast cancer detection. The process involves the use of close-range stereophotogrammetry as a data acquisition device for the determination of breast surface concavities. We report the methodology used to detect these surface depressions, the rationale for the study, and our preliminary findings.