title: A karyometric approach to the characterization of atypical endometrial hyperplasia with and without co-occurring adenocarcinoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To develop a karyometric image analysis approach to distinguishing atypical endometrial hyperplasia with and without co-occurring adenocarcinoma.
  
  
  METHODS
  Six cases of atypical hyperplasia without and 6 cases with co-occurring adenocarcinoma, 4 cases of normal endometrium and 3 cases of adenocarcinoma were identified. From each case 100 nuclei were measured in representative diagnostic areas identified by an experienced pathologist. Discriminant analyses were performed. An unsupervised learning algorithm was applied to define and characterize different nuclear phenotypes, and those data were used to identify cases with co-occurring adenocarcinoma.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Discriminant analysis showed that nuclei from atypical hyperplasia and atypical hyperplasia with co-occurring adenocarcinoma are statistically different. The unsupervised learning algorithm revealed differences in nuclear subpopulations that can be used to correctly identify an estimated 85% of individual cases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Nuclei from atypical hyperplasia without and with co-occurring adenocarcinoma have statistically different karyometric characteristics that may facilitate case classification.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gynecology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85724-5078, USA. fcisco@u.arizona.edu
authors.forename: Francisco A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Garcia
authors.forename: John R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: David S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Alberts
authors.forename: Yun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.forename: Peter H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Bartels
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000473:pathology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D004714:Endometrial Hyperplasia / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D004717:Endometrium / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D007620:Karyometry