{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,10]],"date-time":"2026-07-10T17:18:08Z","timestamp":1783703888862,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,1,29]],"date-time":"2023-01-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1674950400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001871","name":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e a Tecnologia\u2014FCT\/MEC (PIDDAC)","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["UIDB\/00645\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UIDB\/00645\/2020"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001871","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Breast cancer is the most common and the fifth deadliest cancer worldwide. In more advanced stages of cancer, cancer cells metastasize through lymphatic and blood vessels. Currently there is no satisfactory neoadjuvant (i.e., preoperative) diagnosis to assess whether cancer has spread to neighboring Axillary Lymph Nodes (ALN). This paper addresses the use of radar Microwave Imaging (MWI) to detect and determine whether ALNs have been metastasized, presenting an analysis of the performance of different artifact removal and beamformer algorithms in distinct anatomical scenarios. We assess distinct axillary region models and the effect of varying the shape of the skin, muscle and subcutaneous adipose tissue layers on single ALN detection. We also study multiple ALN detection and contrast between healthy and metastasized ALNs. We propose a new beamformer algorithm denominated Channel-Ranked Delay-Multiply-And-Sum (CR-DMAS), which allows the successful detection of ALNs in order to achieve better Signal-to-Clutter Ratio, e.g., with the muscle layer up to 3.07 dB, a Signal-to-Mean Ratio of up to 20.78 dB and a Location Error of 1.58 mm. In multiple target detection, CR-DMAS outperformed other well established beamformers used in the context of breast MWI. Overall, this work provides new insights into the performance of algorithms in axillary MWI.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/s23031496","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,1,30]],"date-time":"2023-01-30T02:28:34Z","timestamp":1675045714000},"page":"1496","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":7,"title":["Evaluating the Performance of Algorithms in Axillary Microwave Imaging towards Improved Breast Cancer Staging"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"23","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8976-7651","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Matilde","family":"Pato","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto de Biof\u00edsica e Engenharia Biom\u00e9dica, Faculdade de Ci\u00eancias, Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal"},{"name":"Future Internet of Technologies-Lisbon School of Engineering (FIT-ISEL), R. Conselheiro Em\u00eddio Navarro 1, 1959-007 Lisboa, Portugal"},{"name":"Lisbon School of Engineering (ISEL), R. Conselheiro Em\u00eddio Navarro 1, 1959-007 Lisboa, Portugal"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ricardo","family":"Eleut\u00e9rio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Physics Department, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University of Lisbon, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0025-863X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Raquel C.","family":"Concei\u00e7\u00e3o","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto de Biof\u00edsica e Engenharia Biom\u00e9dica, Faculdade de Ci\u00eancias, Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4053-8887","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Daniela M.","family":"Godinho","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto de Biof\u00edsica e Engenharia Biom\u00e9dica, Faculdade de Ci\u00eancias, Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,1,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"The Global Cancer Observatory\u2014World Health Organization (2022, December 20). 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