Monte Carlo simulation of novel breast imaging modalities based on coherent x-ray scattering.

We present upgraded versions of MC-GPU and penEasy_Imaging, two open-source Monte Carlo codes for the simulation of radiographic projections and CT, that have been extended and validated to account for the effect of molecular interference in the coherent x-ray scatter. The codes were first validation by comparison between simulated and measured energy dispersive x-ray diffraction (EDXRD) spectra. A second validation was by evaluation of the rejection factor of a focused anti-scatter grid. To exemplify the capabilities of the new codes, the modified MC-GPU code was used to examine the possibility of characterizing breast tissue composition and microcalcifications in a volume of interest inside a whole breast phantom using EDXRD and to simulate a coherent scatter computed tomography (CSCT) system based on first generation CT acquisition geometry. It was confirmed that EDXRD and CSCT have the potential to characterize tissue composition inside a whole breast. The GPU-accelerated code was able to simulate, in just a few hours, a complete CSCT acquisition composed of 9758 independent pencil-beam projections. In summary, it has been shown that the presented software can be used for fast and accurate simulation of novel breast imaging modalities relying on scattering measurements and therefore can assist in the characterization and optimization of promising modalities currently under development.