Channelized hotelling observer for multi-vendor breast tomosynthesis image quality estimation: detection of calcification clusters in an anthropomorphic phantom

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to test the applicability of a previously developed model observer for detection of calcification clusters in digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) on five different types of DBT scanners. Methods: A physical phantom with anthropomorphic features (“L1”) was scanned on DBT scanners from five different vendors: Fujifilm Amulet Innovality, GE Senographe Pristina, IMS Giotto Class, Hologic 3Dimensions and Siemens Mammomat Revelation at three dose levels. The phantom images were then prepared for four-alternative forced choice (4AFC) reading study, where six medical physicist observers participated. The image datasets were read as well by a previously developed channelized Hotelling model observer (CHO), also using a 4AFC paradigm, and compared with the human observer results. Results: The percentage of correctly detected calcification clusters (PC) for each target size, dose level and DBT system was compared between the model and the human observers. The goodness of the fit criteria had correlation coefficients varying from 0.94 to 1.00; linear regression slopes ranged from 0.96 to 1.37 and the mean error was between -2.2PC to 5.2PC. Conclusion: The two-step CHO algorithm results closely matched the detectability results of the human observers and can therefore be used for future image quality scoring of the L1 phantom images on these DBT system within the studied dose rate.