Diagnostics (Feb 2023)

Deep Learning-Based Image Quality Improvement in Digital Positron Emission Tomography for Breast Cancer

  • Mio Mori,
  • Tomoyuki Fujioka,
  • Mayumi Hara,
  • Leona Katsuta,
  • Yuka Yashima,
  • Emi Yamaga,
  • Ken Yamagiwa,
  • Junichi Tsuchiya,
  • Kumiko Hayashi,
  • Yuichi Kumaki,
  • Goshi Oda,
  • Tsuyoshi Nakagawa,
  • Iichiroh Onishi,
  • Kazunori Kubota,
  • Ukihide Tateishi

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics13040794
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13, no. 4
p. 794

Abstract

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We investigated whether 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography images restored via deep learning (DL) improved image quality and affected axillary lymph node (ALN) metastasis diagnosis in patients with breast cancer. Using a five-point scale, two readers compared the image quality of DL-PET and conventional PET (cPET) in 53 consecutive patients from September 2020 to October 2021. Visually analyzed ipsilateral ALNs were rated on a three-point scale. The standard uptake values SUVmax and SUVpeak were calculated for breast cancer regions of interest. For “depiction of primary lesion”, reader 2 scored DL-PET significantly higher than cPET. For “noise”, “clarity of mammary gland”, and “overall image quality”, both readers scored DL-PET significantly higher than cPET. The SUVmax and SUVpeak for primary lesions and normal breasts were significantly higher in DL-PET than in cPET (p p = 0.250, 0.625). DL-PET improved visual image quality for breast cancer compared with cPET. SUVmax and SUVpeak were significantly higher in DL-PET than in cPET. DL-PET and cPET exhibited comparable diagnostic abilities for ALN metastasis.

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