Descrizione del progetto
Imaging mammario altamente specifico con approccio multimodale
I programmi di screening del cancro al seno tramite mammografia hanno migliorato la diagnosi, gli esiti clinici e la sopravvivenza. Tuttavia, la mammografia è soggetta a risultati falsi positivi, che possono condurre all’esecuzione di procedure invasive non realmente necessarie. Per ovviare a questo limite, il progetto SOLUS, finanziato dall’UE, riunisce esperti del mondo accademico, clinico e industriale per sviluppare un sistema di imaging innovativo che possa fornire diagnosi accurate del cancro al seno. Il consorzio svilupperà concetti e componenti fotonici avanzati per creare un sistema di imaging multimodale (basato su ultrasuoni e ottica) a basso costo e non invasivo, con una specificità senza precedenti. Questo sistema avanzato consentirà la caratterizzazione completa del tessuto mammario, migliorando così la diagnosi del cancro al seno e apportando benefici alle donne di tutta Europa.
Obiettivo
SOLUS is a trans-disciplinary 54-month project bringing together 9 partners: industries (4), academic and clinical institutions from 5 countries (engineers, physicists and radiologists) representing cutting-edge expertise in their fields, to develop an innovative non-invasive, point-of-care, low-cost, easy-to-operate, multi-modal imaging system (diffuse optics and ultrasounds/shear wave elastography) for high-specificity diagnosis of breast cancer, the most common female cancer in Europe. Mammographic screening is effective in reducing mortality, however the 10-year cumulative false-positive risk is 50-60%, leading to needless additional invasive procedures (e.g. biopsy). The project addresses the unmet clinical need for higher specificity in breast cancer imaging following screening by fully combining photonics with non-photonics techniques, developing and clinically validating innovative and previously unthinkable photonics concepts and components: time-domain small source-detector distance optical tomography, miniaturized picosecond pulsed laser sources, high-dynamic-range time-gated single-photons detectors to achieve unprecedented sensitivity and depth penetration. For the first time, this allows a comprehensive quantitative characterization of breast tissue including composition (water, lipids, collagen), functional blood parameters, morphologic information and mechanical parameters (stiffness). This innovative multi-parametric characterization will significantly improve the specificity of breast screening, with great impact on the quality of life of millions of European women every year, and huge savings for the healthcare systems. The strong involvement of leading industrial players at all levels in the value chain will push the European innovation process and make a significant contribution to ensuring Europe’s industrial leadership in the biophotonics healthcare market, while addressing one of the largest societal challenges in health and well-being.
Campo scientifico
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftwaresoftware applicationssystem software
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicineoncologybreast cancer
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesopticslaser physicspulsed lasers
- engineering and technologymedical engineeringdiagnostic imaging
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesacousticsultrasound
Programma(i)
Argomento(i)
Meccanismo di finanziamento
RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinatore
20133 Milano
Italia