Carrie B. Hruska, Ph.D.

The goal of this pilot study is to evaluate capabilities of the StarGuide NextGen SPECT/CT system to inform future clinical use of this technology.

The purpose of this study is to show that improvements in the molecular breast imaging (MBI) technology will allow reduction of the administered dose of Tc-99m sestamibi while maintaining a sensitivity of 90% for tumor detection.

The primary objective of this work is to determine if half-dose Molecular Breast Imaging (MBI) performed with 4 mCi Tc-99m sestamibi with or without Wide Beam Reconstruction applied can achieve image quality and diagnostic accuracy non-inferior to that of standard MBI performed with 8 mCi Tc-99m sestamibi.

The main purpose of this study is to  evaluate new types of gamma camera (the Veriton and Starguide systems) that provide a significant gain in system sensitivity and improved image quality compared to a conventional gamma camera that can achieve equal or better image quality than a standard SPECT/CT system.

The purpose of this study is to gather qualitative information about patient comfort during MBI examinations. The primary aim is to assess patient comfort during MBI, relative to comfort during a mammogram. We also wish to identify factors that contribute to discomfort and patients’ willingness to have MBI in the future.

Increased mammographic density is recognized as an important risk factor for developing breast cancer, however, the underlying mechanism explaining this relationship is unclear. The investigators hypothesize that Molecular Breast Imaging (MBI) can more accurately distinguish dense tissue on mammography which is at high risk from dense tissue at low risk by indicating cellular activity in dense tissue as radiotracer uptake (functional density) in the breast. In this pilot study, the investigators want to compare the histological characteristics of breast tissue in patients with who have similar density on mammography but different levels of functional density on MBI.

The investigators hypothesize that knowledge of the functional behavior of areas of mammographic density will enable more specific identification of dense tissue at-risk for breast cancer, ultimately providing predictive information on an individual's risk of developing breast cancer.