Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Systems Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon, Korea.
J Endourol. 2011 May;25(5):851-7. doi: 10.1089/end.2010.0468. Epub 2011 Apr 14.
The aim of this study was to estimate the mechanical properties (elasticity) of normal and cancer prostate tissues and to develop a tissue elasticity map for the diagnosis and localization of prostate cancer.
A total of 735 sites from 35 radical prostatectomy specimens were used in the experiments using a robotic palpation system, and the elasticities of the specimens were estimated by a tissue characterization algorithm. The estimated elasticities from 21 regions were separated into normal and cancer tissues using the pathological information, and a tissue elasticity map was developed using numerical functions and a nonlinear surface-fitting method.
The mean elastic moduli of the normal and cancer tissues were 15.25 ± 5.88 and 28.80 ± 11.20 kPa, respectively. The base region had the highest elasticity, followed by the medial and apex regions. These results demonstrated the ability to separate the cancer tissue from the normal tissue based on its elastic modulus. The tissue elasticity mapping was carried out using the estimated elasticity and nonlinear surface fitting. The proposed map showed the elasticity and was used to estimate the elastic modulus of the prostate at any given region.
Tissue elasticity may be an important indicator of prostate cancer because the pathologic changes alter the tissue properties, including cell integrity and intercellular matrix. This work provides quantitative and objective information for the diagnosis of prostate cancer. In addition, these results may have implications for the localization of prostate cancers.
本研究旨在评估正常和癌前列腺组织的力学特性（弹性），并开发一种用于前列腺癌诊断和定位的组织弹性图。
使用机器人触诊系统对 35 例根治性前列腺切除术标本中的 735 个部位进行了实验，通过组织特征化算法估计标本的弹性。利用病理信息将 21 个区域的估计弹性分为正常组织和癌组织，并使用数值函数和非线性曲面拟合方法开发组织弹性图。
正常组织和癌组织的平均弹性模量分别为 15.25 ± 5.88 kPa 和 28.80 ± 11.20 kPa。基底区的弹性最高，其次是中区和尖区。这些结果表明，根据弹性模量可以将癌组织与正常组织分离。使用估计的弹性和非线性曲面拟合进行组织弹性图绘制。所提出的图谱显示了弹性，并用于估计任何给定区域的前列腺弹性模量。
组织弹性可能是前列腺癌的一个重要指标，因为病理变化会改变组织特性，包括细胞完整性和细胞间基质。这项工作为前列腺癌的诊断提供了定量和客观的信息。此外，这些结果可能对前列腺癌的定位具有重要意义。
