Quantitative Assessment of Tissue Elastic Properties via X-ray Dark-Field Imaging

Tissue stiffness is a critical biomarker for diagnosing and staging pathologies such as fibrosis and cancer. Clinically, tissue stiffness is assessed non-invasively using methods such as ultrasound elastography, magnetic resonance elastography, and optical coherence elastography. While these techniques measure the macroscopic mechanical response of tissue, they provide only indirect information about the underlying microstructural changes. Recently, X-ray dark-field imaging has emerged as a promising modality that offers complementary contrast by visualizing ultra-small-angle X-ray scattering (USAXS) from sub-resolution microstructures. Specifically, directional dark-field imaging can quantify not only the magnitude of scattering, which is related to the density of scattering features, but also the degree and orientation of their alignment (anisotropy). We will present results of our investigations showing the feasibility of quantifying tissue stiffness using directional X-ray dark-field imaging. Our methodology will first involve validating our imaging technique on a well-characterized model system. We will show using our benchtop systems, the use of novel decetors like Timepix that can use both energy and time of arrival of X-ray photons to explore these complex phenomenon.