Design and characterization of a compressible breast phantom to simulate adipose, glandular, and mixed tissue in diagnostic mammography

This study aimed to design and characterize a compressible phantom that simulates adipose, glandular, and mixed breast tissues for mammography applications. Samples were prepared using paraffin gel wax, silicone oil, glass microspheres, and silicone. The linear attenuation coefficients and effective atomic numbers calculated at 15 keV were 0.986 cm-1 and 5.97 for adipose tissue, 1.381 cm-1 and 7.81 for glandular tissue, and 1.772 cm-1 and 6.91 for the mixed sample. Densities and Young's modulus values obtained from computed tomography and compression tests were 0.89 g·cm-3 and 24.75 kPa for adipose, 0.98 g·cm-3 and 31.26 kPa for glandular, and 0.95 g·cm-3 and 26.27 kPa for the mixed composition. Mammographic images were satisfactory, and the calculated mean glandular dose values closely matched those extracted from Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) headers, with mixed and glandular samples showing similar values to patient data. Slight deviations from previously published results suggest potential areas for further refinement of phantom properties.