Evaluation of a new method of calculating breast tumor volume based on automated breast ultrasound.

Abstract

ObjectiveTo evaluate the effectiveness and advantages of a new method for calculating breast tumor volume based on an automated breast ultrasound system (ABUS).MethodsA total of 42 patients (18–70 years old) with breast lesions were selected for this study. The Ivenia ABUS 2.0 (General Electric Company, USA) was used, with a probe frequency of 6–15 MHz. Adobe Photoshop CS6 software was used to calculate the pixel ratio of each ABUS image, and to draw an outline of the tumor cross-section. The resulting area (in pixels) was multiplied by the pixel ratio to yield the area of the tumor cross-section. The Wilcoxon signed rank test and Bland-Altman plot were used to compare mean differences and mean values, respectively, between the two methods.ResultsThere was no significant difference between the tumor volumes calculated by pixel method as compared to the traditional method (P>0.05). Repeated measurements of the same tumor volume were more consistent with the pixel method.ConclusionThe new pixel method is feasible for measuring breast tumor volume and has good validity and measurement stability.