Reassessment of transillumination light scanning for the diagnosis of breast cancer.

Transillumination light scanning is a non-x-ray, noninvasive modality that uses low-intensity emissions of red and near infrared light to visualize the tissues of the breast. The absorption characteristics of the emitted light from the breast tissues are fed into a computer that transforms the analog signals into varying degrees of color saturation hues, ranging from blue to red. The basic premise for the use of transillumination is that breast cancer, because of its increased blood supply, absorbs more near infrared radiation than benign tissue. Thus, abnormal or malignant breast tissues appear blue on the light scan, while normal breast tissues appear red. The safety and lack of risk of radiation exposure of this technique have been demonstrated.