Breast Cancer Detection Using 1D, 2D, and 3D FDTD Numerical Methods

Early detection of breast cancer using a radio frequency application is technically challenging, but potentially of great importance since it would be fast and cheap to implement. This paper explores an ideal ultra-wideband application for detecting tumour cancer within breast tissues using an FDTD numerical method. 1D, 2D and 3D FDTD models are investigated experimentally and the best ways of identifying the existence of cancerous tissue are discussed. Pulses with a narrow bandwidth of 4 GHz, centred at 6 GHz, were used for excitation, and their reflections from tumour equivalents of various positions and sizes were recorded and plotted. Results of analysis suggest the scheme is a suitable candidate for cancer detection.