By Martin E Stivers II, CPT, CLET |
A well-kept secret among the new diagnostic and screening technologies being developed almost every day is the Digital Infrared Imaging device, also known as DITI, Thermal Imager, Bio-Optic Scanner, and a multitude of other names. This easy to use, far reaching technology has been with us for over 30 years.
In 1982 and again in 2005, the FDA (Federal Drug Administration) approved thermograms as adjunctive screening devices with mammograms, ultra-sound and other various radiological methods. The DITI technology actually allows the body to tell on itself. By measuring the surface body temperature with a highly sensitive thermal imaging device, a certified, trained medical specialist can determine anomalies below the surface of the skin. Such anomalies are usually related to inflammation, disease and/or vascular irregularities.
It works like this. The body has built–in signals that react when a tumor is starting to grow (or exists) in the region of the breast. A by-product known as “Nitric-Oxide” is emitted when a cell is pre-cancerous. Nitric oxide continues to be produced after the tumor has developed, and causes the vascular system in the area of the growth to dilate (vaso-dilation), allowing for more blood to flow unrestricted. This shows up as a “hot” vascular pattern, different than normal vessels. While this is going on, another medical phenomenon happens, called “Neo-angiogenesis.” In simple terms it means that “new blood supply vessels” are formed and how the body responds to satisfy the growing demand by the tumor for more blood. The new veins are created without nerves and do not constrict (slow down blood flow) like regular veins do. Thermography uses the body’s own autonomic nervous system to trick the vascular blood flow into constricting (vaso-constriction) meaning less blood flow, less heat. This is called a “challenge.”
The technician collects an image of the patient and then re-images the same area after the challenge to the autonomic system is made; this is done by immersing the hands in a cold-water bath for about 1 minute.
Another medical specialist reviews the digitally captured images and with the aid of a computer program, can read in detail the individual temperatures anywhere on the imaged areas of the body. By comparing the first set of images (baseline images) to the second set of identical images (challenge images), a clear pattern of thermal signatures will be seen.
The areas in the breast or breast area that show an increase in thermal heat or that have remained the same temperature, become red flags and are examined very closely. This is followed by a review of the temperatures from known points on the breast, the tail of the breast, and the underarm region, from which a comprehensive report is compiled and reviewed by a medical doctor.
A recommendation is then made based on the final thermal rating of the patient in relation to the probable risk of tumors or breast disease being present. If problems are demonstrated, a secondary confirmation from an independent source is always recommended.
Because your body has the ability to provide thermal proof of the condition of the vascular system in and around the breast, this easy, safe and highly accurate method of breast screening is a clear and viable alternative to the mammogram. Moreover, because this is a physiological screening and not an anatomical exam, the possibility of early detection is much greater since the spin off of nitric oxide begins in the pre-cancerous stage, and it is temperature sensitive. The “angiogenesis” begins once the cells have mutated and are forming, but still very small; this also can be measured by its distinct temperature pattern very early.
This makes the use of Thermograms one of the earliest possible forms of tumor detection available to the vast majority of women and the few rare men. It’s never too soon for a woman to begin to pay attention to her breast health. Waiting until age 40 or older can be an unnecessary gamble with your life. Thermograms work as well on twenty, thirty and forty year olds and through the fifties, sixties and seventies. Size and shape of breast make no difference in the results of the imaging. This very beneficial method of medical screening for breast health is worth finding out about.
References:
1. Jones, C.H. Thermography of the Female Breast. In Parsons, C.A. (Ed), Diagnosis of Diseases; University Park Press, Baltimore, MD, 1983.
2. Guidi, Anthony J. M.D., Stuart J. Schnitt M.D.. “Angiogenesis in Preinvasive Lesions of the Breast .” The Breast Journal 2 issue 6(1996).
3. Lawson RN and Chughtai MS: Breast cancer and body temperatures. Can Med Assoc. 1963.
4. Rodenberg DA, Chaet MS, Bass RC, Arkovitz MD and Garcia BF. “Nitric Oxide: An Overview.” The American Journal of Surgery 170(1995).
5. Louis K., Guthrie, M., Walter, J.: Breast Thermography. Prediction and Risk.1980
For more info call ThermaDiagnostics 775-828-1200.
