Telemammography Using Satellite Communications

Fortunately, a number of major global satellite networks are being developed for deployment at the end of this decade, bringing a low-cost telecommunications infrastructure connection to virtually any location. NASA Lewis Research Center's Advanced Space Communications Laboratory is now working with leading breast cancer research hospitals, including the Cleveland Clinic and the University of Virginia, to perform the critical research necessary to allow new satellite networks to support telemammography.

The Satellite Telemammography Project recently completed its first live demonstration: several digitized mammography images were transmitted from Lewis to the ACTS Results Conference via the ACTS satellite T1 VSAT Earth terminals. The Satellite Telemammography Project is working on several critical technology elements required for the future deployment of satellite telemammography systems. One of these elements is the determination of satellite link and image-compression parameters required for telemammography transmission. These parameters are needed to determine the quality of the satellite link needed for transmission and the maximum level of image compression that will maintain diagnostic accuracy. Another element is the need for faster and more efficient image-compression algorithms, which are required to reduce the size of mammography image files from up to 40 megabytes (MB) to 1 MB or less to allow fast transmission over T1 rate links. Also, the process must be integrated with hospital image archiving and communications systems.

Telemammography workstations with high-resolution medical image monitors are configured to allow the study of digitized mammograms and to apply image-compression algorithms. The Advanced Space Communications Laboratory satellite communications testbed will be used to establish satellite link and image-compression parameters. To provide basic satellite telemammography standards, expert mammographers will participate in studies that fulfill strict medical and statistical requirements. ACTS satellite and ground terminals will be used to test and demonstrate long-distance satellite telemammography between Lewis and digital mammography research hospitals. The Satellite Telemammography Project will provide some of the most important communications technology elements for enabling low-cost satellite telemammography.