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In this paper, a nonuniform projection distribution (NUPD) CT method is proposed for the region-of-interest-specific examination in the solitary lung nodule follow-up application in order to reduce redundant x-ray projections exposed on normal tissues. The method exploits personal previous lung CT scan information to design a nonuniform x-ray projection modulation scheme where x-rays are sparsely modulated over the areas outside of the nodule in each projection view. The nonuniform projection modulation scheme could obstruct 71.84% of the x-ray projections within each scanning view in the case of a 40-mm-diameter region of interest of a solitary lung nodule, and eventually, 96.80% of the x-ray projections are eliminated in a complete circular scan in cooperation with the double sparse sampling protocol. We also devise a prior image-guided patchwise low-rank reconstruction in NUPD CT to improve the imaging quality. The proposed reconstructions have the highest Peak Signal to Noise Ratio values compared with other methods for both the full field of view (FOV) and region of interest (ROI). The structural similarities with the references are 0.9922 for the complete FOV and above 0.9999 for the ROI.

In this article, our previous research on the application of thermal energy transfer for tumor treatment and early diagnosis has been briefly reviewed. The work encompasses some mechanistic studies of the thermal effects on the breast cancer cells and microvascular networks. Accordingly, a new thermal system was designed for more effective thermal therapy and targeted drug delivery. It was clearly demonstrated that the thermal-physical treatment could be effectively applied to tumor therapy, and the therapeutic effect could be enhanced through rapid cooling and heating alternations in the tissue.

Refractive-index (phase-contrast) radiology was able to detect lung tumors less than 1 mm in live mice. Significant micromorphology differences were observed in the microradiographs between normal, inflamed, and lung cancer tissues. This was made possible by the high phase contrast and by the fast image taking that reduces the motion blur. The detection of cancer and inflammation areas by phase contrast microradiology and microtomography was validated by bioluminescence and histopathological analysis. The smallest tumor detected is less than 1 mm(3) with accuracy better than 1 x 10(-3) mm(3). This level of performance is currently suitable for animal studies, while further developments are required for clinical application.