Bayesian belief network for the Gleason patterns in prostatic adenocarcinoma: development of a diagnostic decision support system for educational purposes.
OBJECTIVE
To develop a Bayesian belief network (BBN) for Gleason grading of prostate adenocarcinoma.


METHODS
A shallow network was developed for Gleason grading with open-tree topology, with a root node containing 5 subjective diagnostic alternatives and 8 first-level descendant nodes for diagnostic features. Features or diagnostic clues of the descendant nodes were based on architecture of Gleason patterns. Data collected on 20 slides in the first and third slide circulations in the U.K.-based investigation of observer reproducibility of Gleason grading of prostatic biopsies were used. Circulations were called A and B. Level of agreement was studied using kappa statistics.


RESULTS
Mean of percentage agreements between subjective Gleason major pattern attributed to slides by pathologists and subjective Gleason major pattern most frequently assigned to each slide was 85% in A and 88% in B. Mean of percentage agreements between BBN reading for slides read by pathologists and BBN reading most frequently seen in each slide was 77% in A and 70% in B.


CONCLUSIONS
The BBN for Gleason grading is readily implemented, allowing use of linguistic variables and descriptive terms and accumulation of evidence presented by morphologic clues. This diagnostic decision support system has potential in pathology education.
Montironi
Rodolfo
R
Institute of Pathological Anatomy and Histopathology, Polytechnic University of the Marche Region, Torrette, Ancona, Italy. r.montironi@univpm.it
Ball
Richard Yardley
RY
Griffiths
David Francis Rees
DF
Grigor
Kenneth
K
Harnden
Patricia M
PM
Jarmulowicz
Michel
M
McWilliam
Lorna Jean
LJ
Moseley
Robert Peter
RP
Parkinson
Margaret Constance
MC
Santinelli
Alfredo
A
Moss
Sue Mary
SM
Melia
Jane Westfield
JW
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology*; D001499:Bayes Theorem; D020000:Decision Support Systems, Clinical; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D015588:Observer Variation; D010338:Pathology, Clinical / Q000193:education; D011467:Prostate; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results