Repeatability of Radiomic Features in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer [18F]FDG-PET/CT Studies: Impact of Reconstruction and Delineation

• Published in: Molecular imaging and biology Vol. 18; no. 5; pp. 788 - 795
• Main Authors: van Velden, Floris H. P., Kramer, Gerbrand M., Frings, Virginie, Nissen, Ida A., Mulder, Emma R., de Langen, Adrianus J., Hoekstra, Otto S., Smit, Egbert F., Boellaard, Ronald
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.10.2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Aged; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung - diagnostic imaging; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung - pathology; Demography; Female; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18 - chemistry; Humans; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; Imaging; Lung Neoplasms - diagnostic imaging; Lung Neoplasms - pathology; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Middle Aged; Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography; Radiology; Reproducibility of Results; Research Article; Repeatability; Tracer uptake heterogeneity; Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC); PET/CT; Radiomics
• ISSN: 1536-1632; 1860-2002
• DOI: 10.1007/s11307-016-0940-2

Purpose To assess (1) the repeatability and (2) the impact of reconstruction methods and delineation on the repeatability of 105 radiomic features in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) 2-deoxy-2-[ 18 F]fluoro-D-glucose ([ 18 F]FDG) positron emission tomorgraphy/computed tomography (PET/CT) studies. Procedures Eleven NSCLC patients received two baseline whole-body PET/CT scans. Each scan was reconstructed twice, once using the point spread function (PSF) and once complying with the European Association for Nuclear Medicine (EANM) guidelines for tumor PET imaging. Volumes of interest ( n  = 19) were delineated twice, once on PET and once on CT images. Results Sixty-three features showed an intraclass correlation coefficient ≥ 0.90 independent of delineation or reconstruction. More features were sensitive to a change in delineation than to a change in reconstruction (25 and 3 features, respectively). Conclusions The majority of features in NSCLC [ 18 F]FDG-PET/CT studies show a high level of repeatability that is similar or better compared to simple standardized uptake value measures.