A novel brightness preserving gradient based joint histogram equalization technique for mammogram image contrast enhancement

Abstract

Mammogram image analysis is a crucial domain in the image-based diagnosis process. It is a trusted modality of non-invasive imaging for detecting tumour regions in the breast mass. However, poor contrast in the mammogram images is a key challenging issue. To address the issue, a brightness preserving gradient based joint histogram equalization (BPGJHE) method is suggested for enhancing the image quality while restoring the actual brightness and the structural information. The key contributions of the proposed method are (1) preserve the actual brightness of the mammogram images, (2) preserve the multi-scale structural details using an improved gradient filtering approach, (3) enrich the performance of the histogram equalization approach by incorporating the spatial information in the histogram. The suggested method is assessed using a series of mammogram images from standard datasets. The performance of the suggested method is validated in competence to the cutting-edge schemes. The quantitative assessment is performed using extensive validation metrics. The results indicate the efficacy of the suggested method.