Editorial

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Open AccessEditorial

Special Issue “Advances in Breast MRI”

by Francesca Galati, Rubina Manuela Trimboli and Federica Pediconi

Diagnostics 2021, 11(12), 2297; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics11122297 - 08 Dec 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1909

Abstract

We thank all the authors, reviewers and the editorial staff who contributed to this Special Issue [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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9 pages, 1193 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Fat Composition Measured by Proton Spectroscopy: A Breast Cancer Tumor Marker?

by Almir Bitencourt, Varadan Sevilimedu, Elizabeth A. Morris, Katja Pinker and Sunitha B. Thakur

Diagnostics 2021, 11(3), 564; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics11030564 - 21 Mar 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2398

Abstract

Altered metabolism including lipids is an emerging hallmark of breast cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate if breast cancers exhibit different magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS)-based lipid composition than normal fibroglandular tissue (FGT). MRS spectra, using the stimulated echo acquisition mode [...] Read more.

Altered metabolism including lipids is an emerging hallmark of breast cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate if breast cancers exhibit different magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS)-based lipid composition than normal fibroglandular tissue (FGT). MRS spectra, using the stimulated echo acquisition mode sequence, were collected with a 3T scanner from patients with suspicious lesions and contralateral normal tissue. Fat peaks at 1.3 + 1.6 ppm (L13 + L16), 2.1 + 2.3 ppm (L21 + L23), 2.8 ppm (L28), 4.1 + 4.3 ppm (L41 + L43), and 5.2 + 5.3 ppm (L52 + L53) were quantified using LCModel software. The saturation index (SI), number of double bods (NBD), mono and polyunsaturated fatty acids (MUFA and PUFA), and mean chain length (MCL) were also computed. Results showed that mean concentrations of all lipid metabolites and PUFA were significantly lower in tumors compared with that of normal FGT (p ≤ 0.002 and 0.04, respectively). The measure best separating normal and tumor tissues after adjusting with multivariable analysis was L21 + L23, which yielded an area under the curve of 0.87 (95% CI: 0.75–0.98). Similar results were obtained between HER2 positive versus HER2 negative tumors. Hence, MRS-based lipid measurements may serve as independent variables in a multivariate approach to increase the specificity of breast cancer characterization. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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12 pages, 5741 KiB

Open AccessArticle

MRI-Derived Tumour-to-Breast Volume Is Associated with the Extent of Breast Surgery

by Andrea Cozzi, Simone Schiaffino, Gianmarco Della Pepa, Serena Carriero, Veronica Magni, Diana Spinelli, Luca A. Carbonaro and Francesco Sardanelli

Diagnostics 2021, 11(2), 204; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics11020204 - 30 Jan 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1788

Abstract

The tumour-to-breast volume ratio (TBVR) is a metric that may help surgical decision making. In this retrospective Ethics-Committee–approved study, we assessed the correlation between magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-derived TBVR and the performed surgery. The TBVR was obtained using a fully manual method for [...] Read more.

The tumour-to-breast volume ratio (TBVR) is a metric that may help surgical decision making. In this retrospective Ethics-Committee–approved study, we assessed the correlation between magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-derived TBVR and the performed surgery. The TBVR was obtained using a fully manual method for the segmentation of the tumour volume (TV) and a growing region semiautomatic method for the segmentation of the whole breast volume (WBV). Two specifically-trained residents (R1 and R2) independently segmented T1-weighted datasets of 51 cancer cases in 51 patients (median age 57 years). The intraobserver and interobserver TBVR reproducibility were calculated. Mann-Whitney U, Spearman correlations, and Bland-Altman statistics were used. Breast-conserving surgery (BCS) was performed in 31/51 cases (61%); mastectomy was performed in 20/51 cases (39%). The median TBVR was 2.08‰ (interquartile range 0.70–9.13‰) for Reader 1, and 2.28‰ (interquartile range 0.71–9.61‰) for Reader 2, with an 84% inter-reader reproducibility. The median segmentation times were 54 s for the WBV and 141 s for the TV. Significantly-lower TBVR values were observed in the breast-conserving surgery group (median 1.14‰, interquartile range 0.49–2.55‰) than in the mastectomy group (median 10.52‰, interquartile range 2.42–14.73‰) for both readers (p < 0.001). Large scale prospective studies are needed in order to validate MRI-derived TBVR as a predictor of the type of breast surgery. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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11 pages, 922 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Can MRI Biomarkers Predict Triple-Negative Breast Cancer?

by Giuliana Moffa, Francesca Galati, Emmanuel Collalunga, Veronica Rizzo, Endi Kripa, Giulia D’Amati and Federica Pediconi

Diagnostics 2020, 10(12), 1090; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics10121090 - 15 Dec 2020

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 3328

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate MRI features of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) compared with non-TNBC, to predict histopathological results. In the study, 26 patients with TNBC and 24 with non-TNBC who underwent multiparametric MRI of the breast on a 3 [...] Read more.

The purpose of this study was to investigate MRI features of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) compared with non-TNBC, to predict histopathological results. In the study, 26 patients with TNBC and 24 with non-TNBC who underwent multiparametric MRI of the breast on a 3 T magnet over a 10-months period were retrospectively recruited. MR imaging sets were evaluated by two experienced breast radiologists in consensus and classified according to the 2013 American College of Radiology (ACR) BI-RADS lexicon. The comparison between the two groups was performed using the Chi-square test and followed by logistic regression analyses. We found that 92% of tumors presented as mass enhancements (p = 0.192). 41.7% of TNBC and 86.4% of non-TNBC had irregular shape (p = 0.005); 58.3% of TNBC showed circumscribed margins, compared to 9.1% of non-TNBC masses (p = 0.001); 75% of TNBC and 9.1% of non-TNBC showed rim enhancement (p < 0.001). Intralesional necrosis was significantly associated with TNBC (p = 0.016). Rim enhancement and intralesional necrosis risulted to be positive predictors at univariate analysis (OR = 29.86, and 8.10, respectively) and the multivariate analysis confirmed that rim enhancement is independently associated with TNBC (OR = 33.08). The mean ADC values were significantly higher for TNBC (p = 0.011). In conclusion, TNBC is associated with specific MRI features that can be possible predictors of pathological results, with a consequent prognostic value. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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14 pages, 2213 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Quantitative Measurement of Breast Density Using Personalized 3D-Printed Breast Model for Magnetic Resonance Imaging

by Rooa Sindi, Yin How Wong, Chai Hong Yeong and Zhonghua Sun

Diagnostics 2020, 10(10), 793; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics10100793 - 06 Oct 2020

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1769

Abstract

Despite the development and implementation of several MRI techniques for breast density assessments, there is no consensus on the optimal protocol in this regard. This study aimed to determine the most appropriate MRI protocols for the quantitative assessment of breast density using a [...] Read more.

Despite the development and implementation of several MRI techniques for breast density assessments, there is no consensus on the optimal protocol in this regard. This study aimed to determine the most appropriate MRI protocols for the quantitative assessment of breast density using a personalized 3D-printed breast model. The breast model was developed using silicone and peanut oils to simulate the MRI related-characteristics of fibroglandular and adipose breast tissues, and then scanned on a 3T MRI system using non-fat-suppressed and fat-suppressed sequences. Breast volume, fibroglandular tissue volume, and percentage of breast density from these imaging sequences were objectively assessed using Analyze 14.0 software. Finally, the repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to examine the differences between the quantitative measurements of breast volume, fibroglandular tissue volume, and percentage of breast density with respect to the corresponding sequences. The volume of fibroglandular tissue and the percentage of breast density were significantly higher in the fat-suppressed sequences than in the non-fat-suppressed sequences (p < 0.05); however, the difference in breast volume was not statistically significant (p = 0.529). Further, a fat-suppressed T2-weighted with turbo inversion recovery magnitude (TIRM) imaging sequence was superior to the non-fat- and fat-suppressed T1- and T2-weighted sequences for the quantitative measurement of breast density due to its ability to represent the exact breast tissue compositions. This study shows that the fat-suppressed sequences tended to be more useful than the non-fat-suppressed sequences for the quantitative measurements of the volume of fibroglandular tissue and the percentage of breast density. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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11 pages, 1891 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimization of Deep Learning Network Parameters Using Uniform Experimental Design for Breast Cancer Histopathological Image Classification

by Cheng-Jian Lin and Shiou-Yun Jeng

Diagnostics 2020, 10(9), 662; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics10090662 - 01 Sep 2020

Cited by 20 | Viewed by 4160

Abstract

Breast cancer, a common cancer type, is a major health concern in women. Recently, researchers used convolutional neural networks (CNNs) for medical image analysis and demonstrated classification performance for breast cancer diagnosis from within histopathological image datasets. However, the parameter settings of a [...] Read more.

Breast cancer, a common cancer type, is a major health concern in women. Recently, researchers used convolutional neural networks (CNNs) for medical image analysis and demonstrated classification performance for breast cancer diagnosis from within histopathological image datasets. However, the parameter settings of a CNN model are complicated, and using Breast Cancer Histopathological Database data for the classification is time-consuming. To overcome these problems, this study used a uniform experimental design (UED) and optimized the CNN parameters of breast cancer histopathological image classification. In UED, regression analysis was used to optimize the parameters. The experimental results indicated that the proposed method with UED parameter optimization provided 84.41% classification accuracy rate. In conclusion, the proposed method can improve the classification accuracy effectively, with results superior to those of other similar methods. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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15 pages, 2093 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Clinical Feasibility of Reduced Field-of-View Diffusion-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging with Computed Diffusion-Weighted Imaging Technique in Breast Cancer Patients

by Eun Cho, Jin Hwa Lee, Hye Jin Baek, Ji Young Ha, Kyeong Hwa Ryu, Sung Eun Park, Jin Il Moon, Sung-Min Gho and Tetsuya Wakayama

Diagnostics 2020, 10(8), 538; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics10080538 - 30 Jul 2020

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2386

Abstract

Background: We evaluated the feasibility of the reduced field-of-view (rFOV) diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) with computed DWI technique by comparison and analysis of the inter-method agreement among acquired rFOV DWI (rFOVA), rFOV DWI with computed DWI technique (rFOVS), and dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) magnetic resonance [...] Read more.

Background: We evaluated the feasibility of the reduced field-of-view (rFOV) diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) with computed DWI technique by comparison and analysis of the inter-method agreement among acquired rFOV DWI (rFOVA), rFOV DWI with computed DWI technique (rFOVS), and dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with breast cancer. Methods: A total of 130 patients with biopsy-proven breast cancers who underwent breast MRI from April 2017 to December 2017 were included in this study. The rFOVS were reformatted by calculation of the apparent diffusion coefficient curve obtained from rFOVA b = 0 s/mm² and b = 500 s/mm². Visual assessment of the image quality of rFOVA b = 1000 s/mm², rFOVS, and DCE MRI was performed using a four-point grading system. Morphologic analyses of the index cancer was performed on rFOVA, rFOVS, and DCE MRI. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), and contrast of tumor-to-parenchyma (TPC) were calculated. Results: Image quality scores with rFOVA, rFOVS, and DCE MRI were not significantly different (p = 0.357). Lesion analysis of shape, margin, and size of the index cancer also did not show significant differences among the three sequences (p = 0.858, p = 0.242, and p = 0.858, respectively). SNR, CNR, and TPC of DCE MRI were significantly higher than those of rFOVA and rFOVS (p < 0.001, p = 0.001, and p = 0.016, respectively). Significant differences were not found between the SNR, CNR, and TPC of rFOVA and those of rFOVS (p > 0.999, p > 0.999, and p > 0.999, respectively). Conclusion: The rFOVA and rFOVS showed nearly equivalent levels of image quality required for morphological analysis of the tumors and for lesion conspicuity compared with DCE MRI. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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13 pages, 2672 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Detection and Diagnosis of Breast Cancer Using Artificial Intelligence Based Assessment of Maximum Intensity Projection Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Images

by Mio Adachi, Tomoyuki Fujioka, Mio Mori, Kazunori Kubota, Yuka Kikuchi, Wu Xiaotong, Jun Oyama, Koichiro Kimura, Goshi Oda, Tsuyoshi Nakagawa, Hiroyuki Uetake and Ukihide Tateishi

Diagnostics 2020, 10(5), 330; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics10050330 - 20 May 2020

Cited by 37 | Viewed by 5752

Abstract

We aimed to evaluate an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can detect and diagnose lesions of maximum intensity projection (MIP) in dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We retrospectively gathered MIPs of DCE breast MRI for training and validation data from [...] Read more.

We aimed to evaluate an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can detect and diagnose lesions of maximum intensity projection (MIP) in dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We retrospectively gathered MIPs of DCE breast MRI for training and validation data from 30 and 7 normal individuals, 49 and 20 benign cases, and 135 and 45 malignant cases, respectively. Breast lesions were indicated with a bounding box and labeled as benign or malignant by a radiologist, while the AI system was trained to detect and calculate possibilities of malignancy using RetinaNet. The AI system was analyzed using test sets of 13 normal, 20 benign, and 52 malignant cases. Four human readers also scored these test data with and without the assistance of the AI system for the possibility of a malignancy in each breast. Sensitivity, specificity, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) were 0.926, 0.828, and 0.925 for the AI system; 0.847, 0.841, and 0.884 for human readers without AI; and 0.889, 0.823, and 0.899 for human readers with AI using a cutoff value of 2%, respectively. The AI system showed better diagnostic performance compared to the human readers (p = 0.002), and because of the increased performance of human readers with the assistance of the AI system, the AUC of human readers was significantly higher with than without the AI system (p = 0.039). Our AI system showed a high performance ability in detecting and diagnosing lesions in MIPs of DCE breast MRI and increased the diagnostic performance of human readers. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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12 pages, 942 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Novel Mathematical Model of Breast Cancer Diagnostics Using an Associative Pattern Classification

by Raúl Santiago-Montero, Humberto Sossa, David A. Gutiérrez-Hernández, Víctor Zamudio, Ignacio Hernández-Bautista and Sergio Valadez-Godínez

Diagnostics 2020, 10(3), 136; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics10030136 - 01 Mar 2020

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4441

Abstract

Breast cancer is a disease that has emerged as the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women worldwide. The annual mortality rate is estimated to continue growing. Cancer detection at an early stage could significantly reduce breast cancer death rates long-term. Many [...] Read more.

Breast cancer is a disease that has emerged as the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women worldwide. The annual mortality rate is estimated to continue growing. Cancer detection at an early stage could significantly reduce breast cancer death rates long-term. Many investigators have studied different breast diagnostic approaches, such as mammography, magnetic resonance imaging, ultrasound, computerized tomography, positron emission tomography and biopsy. However, these techniques have limitations, such as being expensive, time consuming and not suitable for women of all ages. Proposing techniques that support the effective medical diagnosis of this disease has undoubtedly become a priority for the government, for health institutions and for civil society in general. In this paper, an associative pattern classifier (APC) was used for the diagnosis of breast cancer. The rate of efficiency obtained on the Wisconsin breast cancer database was 97.31%. The APC’s performance was compared with the performance of a support vector machine (SVM) model, back-propagation neural networks, C4.5, naive Bayes, k-nearest neighbor (k-NN) and minimum distance classifiers. According to our results, the APC performed best. The algorithm of the APC was written and executed in a JAVA platform, as well as the experimental and comparativeness between algorithms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Breast MRI)

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