Improvement in radiologists' characterization of malignant and benign breast masses on serial mammograms with computer-aided diagnosis: an ROC study.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the effects of computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) on radiologists' characterization of masses on serial mammograms.


METHODS
Two hundred fifty-three temporal image pairs (138 malignant and 115 benign) obtained from 96 patients who had masses on serial mammograms were evaluated. The temporal pairs were formed by matching masses of the same view from two different examinations. Eight radiologists and two breast imaging fellows assessed the temporal pairs with and without computer aid. The classification of accuracy was quantified by using the area under receiver operating characteristic curve (A(z)). The statistical significance of the difference in A(z) between the different reading conditions was estimated with the Dorfman-Berbaum-Metz method for analysis of multireader multicase data and with the Student paired t test for analysis of observer-specific paired data.


RESULTS
The average A(z) for radiologists' estimates of the likelihood of malignancy was 0.79 without CAD and improved to 0.84 with CAD. The improvement was statistically significant (P =.005). The corresponding average partial area index was 0.25 without CAD and improved to 0.37 with CAD. The improvement was also statistically significant (P =.005). On the basis of Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System assessments, it was estimated that with CAD, each radiologist, on average, reduced 0.7% (0.8 of 115) of unnecessary biopsies and correctly recommended 5.7% (7.8 of 138) of additional biopsies.


CONCLUSIONS
CAD based on analysis of interval changes can significantly increase radiologists' accuracy in classification of masses and thereby may be useful in improving correct biopsy recommendations.
Department of Radiology, University of Michigan Medical Center, CGC B2102, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0904, USA. lhadijisk@umich.edu
Lubomir
L
Hadjiiski
Heang-Ping
HP
Chan
Berkman
B
Sahiner
Mark A
MA
Helvie
Marilyn A
MA
Roubidoux
Caroline
C
Blane
Chintana
C
Paramagul
Nicholas
N
Petrick
Janet
J
Bailey
Katherine
K
Klein
Michelle
M
Foster
Stephanie
S
Patterson
Dorit
D
Adler
Alexis
A
Nees
Joseph
J
Shen
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019540:Area Under Curve; D001706:Biopsy; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D016013:Likelihood Functions; D008327:Mammography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016555:Matched-Pair Analysis; D008875:Middle Aged; D015588:Observer Variation; D012372:ROC Curve; D011857:Radiographic Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted; D011871:Radiology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies