Semiautomatic estimation of breast density with DM-Scan software

• Published in: Radiología (English ed.) Vol. 56; no. 5; pp. 429 - 434
• Main Authors: Martínez Gómez, I, Casals el Busto, M, Antón Guirao, J, Ruiz Perales, F, Llobet Azpitarte, R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier España 01.09.2014
• Subjects: Breast cancer; Breast density; Computer-assisted diagnosis; Cáncer de mama; Densidad mamaria; Diagnóstico asistido por ordenador; Digital processing of mammograms; Interobserver variability; Intraobserver variability; Mammography; Mamografía; Procesamiento digital de mamografías; Radiology; Variabilidad interobservador; Variabilidad intraobservador; Variabilidad intraobservador; Breast density; Procesamiento digital de mamografías; Mammography; Breast cancer; Mamografía; Computer-assisted diagnosis; Diagnóstico asistido por ordenador; Digital processing of mammograms; Variabilidad interobservador; Intraobserver variability; Cáncer de mama; Interobserver variability; Densidad mamaria
• ISSN: 2173-5107; 2173-5107
• DOI: 10.1016/j.rxeng.2012.11.003

Abstract Objective To evaluate the reproducibility of the calculation of breast density with DM-Scan software, which is based on the semiautomatic segmentation of fibroglandular tissue, and to compare it with the reproducibility of estimation by visual inspection. Materials and methods The study included 655 direct digital mammograms acquired using craniocaudal projections. Three experienced radiologists analyzed the density of the mammograms using DM-Scan, and the inter- and intra-observer agreements between pairs of radiologists for the Boyd and BI-RADS® scales were calculated using the intraclass correlation coefficient. The Kappa index was used to compare the inter- and intra-observer agreements with those obtained previously for visual inspection in the same set of images. Results For visual inspection, the mean inter-observer agreement was 0.876 (95% CI: 0.873–0.879) on the Boyd scale and 0.823 (95% CI: 0.818–0.829) on the BI-RADS® scale. The mean intra-observer agreement was 0.813 (95% CI: 0.796–0.829) on the Boyd scale and 0.770 (95% CI: 0.742–0.797) on the BI-RADS® scale. For DM-Scan, the mean inter- and intra-observer agreement was 0.92, considerably higher than the agreement for visual inspection. Conclusion The semiautomatic calculation of breast density using DM-Scan software is more reliable and reproducible than visual estimation and reduces the subjectivity and variability in determining breast density.