Noninvasive measurement of the electrical bioimpedance of breast tumors

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the possibility of differential d iagnosis of tumors, such as breast cancer, by measuring the mammary electri cal bioimpedance via the skin surface noninvasively and by examining the re lationship between the tissue structure of the breast and electrical bioimp edance. The mammary electrical bioimpedance was measured in 24 patients wit h breast cancer Taking into account the measurement results and the distrib ution of the mammary glands and fatty tissue, a breast model with tumors wa s proposed. Based on this model, the distributions of the electric potentia l and electric field in the tissue were theoretically analyzed by the three -dimensional finite element method In clinical cases, the Re values of the diseased breast were significantly larger than those of the contralateral h ealthy breast In theoretical analysis based on the breast model, the Re val ue of mammary electrical bioimpedance varied due to the structure of the br east, that is, the ratio of fatty tissue to mammary gland and the presence of mammary tumors. The results of the measurement agreed with the theoretic al analyses These results suggest that differential diagnosis of breast tum ors is possible by measuring the mammary electrical bioimpedance using noni nvasive electrodes on the skin.