ABSTRACT
Background: Using hair samples to analyze the trace element concentrations is of interest among many researchers. X-ray fluorescence [XRF] and X-ray diffraction [XRD] are the most common methods in studying the structure and concentration of elements of tissues and also crystalline materials, using low energy X-ray
Objectives: In the present study, the detection ability of Wave Length X-ray Fluorescence [WLXRF] of breast cancer at early stages was evaluated and the results were compared with other routine modalities such as mammography
Materials and Methods: Hair samples of 54 women [including 27 healthy and 27 patients] with average age of 52.03 +/- 11.44 years were analyzed. All the sample donors were Iranian women. For the measurements Wave Length X-ray Fluorescence [WLXRF] method was used
Results: Trace elements in healthy individuals were higher than those in cancer patients. In addition, sensitivity of the used method [WLXRF] was 96% compared to mammography [77%] as a gold standard for breast cancer detection
Conclusions: Trace elements in healthy individuals were higher than cancer patients and it seems that WLXRF may be used as a safe, low cost and reliable method with sensitivity higher than those of the other two relevant methods, XRD and mammography