Art of the Breast

October 2009

About the Exhibit

Art and Biology of the Breast is a tribute to the inner beauty of the breast from its cellular and tissue components and their structural order, to the function of the tissues as the source of nutrition for the infant child.

The coordinated function of the cells and ductal systems eventually mature into a lactating organ for child bearing women. The primary function of the organ only exists for a very small portion of the life of child bearing women. For the rest of life, the beauty of the breast as a secondary sex organ fills the minds and imaginations of men and women alike with all sorts of fantasies.

The first part of this exhibit is dedicated to the beauty of the biology of the breast , and the second is dedicated to the dreaded disease of breast cancer.

The cells of the breast are subject to disease . Malignancy starts as a single cell that becomes a rebel in the community of cells.

It is grows and proliferates with no regard to the organism as a whole.

Modern technology is able to identify early malignant change, and contemporary therapeutic regimens give much optimism and hope for cure.

About the Artist

Dr. Davidoff’s interests in biology, nature and creative arts converge in The Cell to the Soul: Art of the Breast. Conventional medical images are augmented and artistically rendered to portray medical and philosophical concepts and to highlight the beauty of the human breasts. These works present the breasts from conception, embryonic development, birth, growth, aging, disease and return, highlighting its special aesthetics during prime function, and then the story of cancer .

Biographical Statement

Ashley Davidoff is Clinical Professor of Radiology at the University of Massachusetts and a clinical radiologist at Caritas St Elizabeth’s Medical Center. He received his medical training at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa. After immigrating to North America he was credentialed in pediatric cardiology at The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto. Subsequently he trained at two Harvard Medical School affiliates, specializing in pediatric cardiac pathology at Children’s Hospital in Boston, and then completing radiology residency and cardiovascular fellowship at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Dr. Davidoff plays an instrumental role in medical education, having won numerous teaching awards and directed several regional medical education courses. His award winning modules in medical education have been exhibited at national radiology meetings.

Dr. Davidoff combines his professional medical interests with artistic endeavors, focusing on form and function in nature. His artwork portrays and incorporates structure of the body and structure in nature in a variety of media. His photography and digital art renderings are currently on exhibit at the Museum of Science, and his sculptural pieces produced from natural elements are displayed in the annual Newton Open Studios exhibit, in his award winning garden. He is happily married to Naomi Fisher and they have four wonderful children, Talya, Arielle, Aaron, and Daniella.

Address: 3 Lake Avenue, Newton Center 02459

Email: ad@thecommonvein.com

Web Site: thecommonvein.com

Birth

Conception

The Sperm, The Egg, and the Spark of Life

The meeting of a single sperm with a single egg creates and instills a spark that fires the soul. An inexplicable inspiration gives birth to a new and unique life. The background greens and blues represent the raw materials of heaven and earth.

Cells and a Ductule

Factories of Production

39939b03.800 exocrine gland epithelium ductule histology cytoplasmic granules nucleus Davidoff art

Microscopic View

13511b01 breast lobe lobule terminal duct lobular unit TDLU adipose tissue stroma connective tissue gland glandular tissue normal anatomy histology Courtesy Frank Reale MD

Terminology

13511b01c04.8s This diagram shows a terminal duct lobule unit. (TDLU) A lobule is ringed in black and the extralobular terminal duct is noted and labelled. The acini are shown ringed in red but the draining intralobular ducts are not seen The lobules and extralobular terminal ducts join to form a single lactiferous duct which exits at the nipple code breast histology fat glands connective tissue extralobular ductule lobule acinus acini breast mammary glands ducts fat Courtesy Frank Reale MD copyright 2009 all rights reserved

The Lobule

Glands Acini and Ducts of the Breast

Artistic View

Glands on Glands

Building the Organ

32645a06 Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD pancreas exocrine cell lobule acinus duct ductule normal histology parts drawing tube gland

The Lobe

42707b03b38b03.8s breast mammary gland lobe lobule adipose tissue layers fat nipple interlobular fat adipose tissue stroma connective tissue parenchyma glandular apparatus mammary apparatus lactiferous ducts ductules acinus acini normal anatomy drawing Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD

Symmetry

42707b03b29b03 CC view breast mammary gland nipple adipose tissue layers fat superficial adipose tissue deep retromammary interlobular fat adipose tissue stroma connective tissue parenchyma glandular apparatus mammary apparatus lactiferous ducts ductules acinus acini normal anatomy drawing Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD

The Tree in the Breast

46792b09.800 breast glandular tissue applied biology appliued anatomy Davidoff art Davidoff trees

Derivation of the Breast Tree

46791c02b01.800 breast glandular tissue applied biology appliued anatomy Davidoff art Davidoff trees

Body’s Blossoms

79560p.800 flowers breasts structure anatomy Davidoff art Davidoff photography TCV applied biology The Common

Fruit

86226.8 pomegranates breast red nipple food in the body food biology medicine and body fruit Davidoff art Davidoff photography

Lymphatic Drainage

78378pb06l03.8s breast mammary gland lymphatic drainage lymph nodes axillary lymph nodes infraclavicular lymph nodes supralavicular lymph nodes internal mammary lymph nodes parasternal lymph nodes anatomy normal Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD

Reclining

78380pb04b breast mammary gland anatomy normal cycle changes premenstrual enlargement art Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD

Skin Deep

Histology of the Breast

“Skin Deep” reflects the radially positioned ducts and glands of the breast interspersed with adipose tissue.

42657b15 Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD breast lobule duct nipple fat glands glandular tissue normal anatomy drawing art Davidoff art

Female Body

Pregnancy

78380pb05b04 breast mammary gland pregnancy lactation anatomy normal art Courtesy Ashley Davidoff

Lactation

Drop of Milk at the Nipple edge

02886b05 breast pregnancy lactation lactating female mammogram mammography Xerography Xerogram Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD anatomy normal physiology

A Drop of Milk

Source of Nutrition

02504pb03 water droplets window glass teardrop shape Davidoff photography water

Lactation

Malignant Sense of Time

85198j03s.81s The image represents the life of a single set of columnar cells showing a progressioon of generations as the cell lives dies and is regenerated. The orange secretions of the cell are seen in the background of the pink cytoplasm and the purple nucleus. The nucleus of the newesest generation and cell is seen as a clock that has become distorted and time has become disordered. This process is abnormal and is a forerunner of a malignant process. histology time malignancy cancer columnar cell histopathology Davidoff art copyright 2009 all rights reserved

Crab Like Cancer Cell

A Cancer is Born

The Crab

Like Father Like Son

32317.8s The post mortem finding of a surface metastasis to the pleura causes obstruction and distension of the pleural lymphatics as seen as white irregular vessels coursing to the mass. These lymphatics are usually about the thickness of a hair and not usually visualized. In this instance they rae distended with white lymph and are about the thickness of the pin (about .05mm) shown overlying the pleural mass. This image does have a crab like shape with the body representing the mass or nodule and the lymphatics reminiscent of the legs. Courtesy Ashley Davidoff and Jeffrey Peirce A86-215 32317 code lungs pulmonary pleura secondary lobules interlobular septa thickened parenchymal nodules neoplasm lymphatics distended metastases lymphangitis obliterans grosspathology crab cancer shape copyright 2009 all rights reserved

Crab Like Spiculated Mass in the Right Breast

42977 Courtesy Priscilla Slanetz MD breast CASE 27: 78 year old with remote history of invasive lobular carcinoma fx spiculated mass Dx: Recurrent carcinoma MRI DB

Malignant Appearing Lesion

Not Palpable – Only Visible by Mammography or by MRI

Parasite

Spiculated Mass

Artistic rendering of a Mammogram

Lumpectomy

Chemotherapy

Reconstructing the Shape of the Breast – TRAM operation Left Breast (Viewers Right)

In this case the right breast of this 44 year old patient (as seen to your left) is the normal breast and the normal gray glandular tissue can be seen within the darker background consisting of adipose (fatty) tissue seen as the black part. The left breast (to your right) is the reconstructed breast that was surgically created from skin and adipose tissue from the abdomen. The shape and form created by the surgeon is remarkably close to the normal breast.

16127 Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD code breast TRAM imaging radiology CTscan DB

Remission

Reborn

Other Art Pieces Relating to Cancer in General

A Cancer Cell – Aberrant Sense of Time

Aberrant Time

Rebel in the Community

A Mean Monster is Born

87160pb06b02b02.81k.8s Different mean space occupation push shove multiplication cancer malignant division bizarre mean loose bonds lack cohesion small hyperchromatic dance movement units to unity individual uniqueness group Davidoff art Davidoff photography copyright 2009 all rights reserved

Dividing and The Battle for Space Begins

87160pb06b02b02.8k.8s Different mean space occupation push shove multiplication cancer malignant division bizarre mean loose bonds lack cohesion small hyperchromatic dance movement units to unity individual uniqueness group Davidoff art Davidoff photography copyright 2009 all rights reserved

85198gc25.08

85198gc25.08 cells epithelium columnar epithelium nucleus cytoplasm cell time adenocarcinoma aberrant growth malignant cancer neoplasm death cycle normal life span age growth mucus dysplasia histopathology hyperchromatic nucleus increased nuclear to cytoplasmic ratio Davidoff art Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD copyright 2009 all rights reserved

32354c01.800

32354c01.800 tube colon trachea bronchus small bowel bile duct epithelium neoplasm benign malignant malignancy epithelial cell multiply multiplication growth mucosa submucosa muscularis serosa adventitia vein lymph node circumferential metastasixe metastasis metastases narrowing stenosis obstruction complication cancer uncontrolled growth Davidoff drawing Davidoff art Davidoff tube Davidoff MD

11528b.8

11528b.8 gallbladder food in the body green pepper cancer carcinoma gall stones cholelithiasis Davidoff art Davidoff photography copyright

69595b09

69595b09 star stellate corona radiata spiculated aggressive cancer carcinoma Davidoff art

85198fc02.8s

85198fc02.8s The image represents the evolution of a single cancer cell (a) that fails to conform to the usual time cycles, grows, multiplies, (b,c,d) and then invades the space of other parts of the tissue like the muscular layer in e and the serosal layer in f. histology time malignancy cancer columnar cell histopathology Davidoff art copyright 2009 all rights reserved

84049p.801

84049p.801 American militia Concord Massachusetts The beginning of the American Revolution resistance along the Battle Road Trail extending from Lexington to Concord Minute man National Historical Park Reenactment July 3rd 2007 in the fields of Hartwell tavern Davidoff photography

87090pb05.8k.8s

A Cancer Cell – Aberrant Sense of Time

The image represents the life of a single set of columnar cells showing a progressioon of generations as the cell lives dies and is regenerated. The orange secretions of the cell are seen in the background of the pink cytoplasm and the purple nucleus. The nucleus of the newesest generation and cell is seen as a clock that has become distorted and time has become disordered. This process is abnormal and is a forerunner of a malignant process. The background is a collage of cytopatholagical specimens obtained from the liver representing a variety of metastases from different primary sites but all matked by large nuclear to cytoplasmic ratio.

Star shape