Classification of XXXX : the effect of computer aid on pathologists grading.

@entity2194 @entity706 @entity1711 @entity2225 @entity1710 @entity8462
BACKGROUND: @entity706 ( @entity706 ) is one of the most common @entity706 in the western world. @entity706 cases are stratified into three histological grades based on the average centroblast count per @entity2194 ( @entity2194 ). The centroblast count is performed manually by the pathologist using an optical microscope and @entity1710 and @entity1711 (H_E) stained tissue section. Although this is the current clinical practice, it suffers from high inter- and intra-observer variability and is vulnerable to sampling bias. METHODS: In this paper, we present a system, called @entity8462 ( @entity8462 ), to assist the pathologist in grading @entity706 cases. We also assess the effect of @entity8462 on accuracy of expert and inexperienced readers. @entity8462 automatically identifies possible HPFs for examination by analyzing H_E and @entity2225 stains, before classifying them into low or high risk categories. The pathologist is first asked to review the slides according to the current routine clinical practice, before being presented with @entity8462 classification via color-coded map. The accuracy of the readers with and without @entity8462 assistance is measured. RESULTS: @entity8462 was used by four experts (board-certified hematopathologists) and seven pathology residents on 20 @entity706 slides. Access to @entity8462 improved overall reader accuracy with the biggest improvement seen among residents. An average AUC value of 0.75 was observed which generally indicates "acceptable" diagnostic performance. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study show that @entity8462 can be useful in increasing the pathologists' accuracy in grading the tissue. To the best of our knowledge, this study measure, for the first time, the effect of computerized image analysis on pathologists' grading of @entity706 . When fully developed, such systems have the potential to reduce sampling bias by examining an increased proportion of HPFs within follicle regions, as well as to reduce inter- and intra-reader variability.
