Contrast-Enhancing Snapshot Narrow-Band Imaging Method for Real-Time Computer-Aided Cervical Cancer Screening

Abstract

Composition of cervical precancerous lesions and carcinoma in situ is rich in hemoglobin, unlike healthy tissues. In this study, we aimed to utilize this difference to enhance the contrast between healthy and diseased tissues via snapshot narrow-band imaging (SNBI). Four narrow-band images centered at wavelengths of characteristic absorption/reflection peaks of hemoglobin were captured with zero-time delay in between by a custom-designed SNBI video camera. Then these spectral images were fused in real time into a single combined image to enhance the contrast between normal and abnormal tissues. Finally, a Euclidean distance algorithm was employed to classify the tissue into clinical meaningful tissue types. Two pre-clinical experiments were conducted to validate the proposed method. Experimental results indicate that contrast between different grades of diseased tissues in the SNBI generated image was indeed enhanced, as compared to conventional white light image (WLI). The computeraided classification accuracy was 100% and 50% as compared to the gold standard histopathological diagnosis results with the SNBI and the conventional WLI methods, respectively. Further, the boundary contour between health tissue, cervical precancerous regions, and carcinoma in situ can be automatically delineated in SNBI. The proposed SNBI method was also fast, and it generated automatic diagnostic results with clear boundary contours at over 11 fps on a Pentium 1.6-GHz laptop. Hence, the proposed SNBI is of great significance to enlarge worldwide the coverage of regular cervical screening program, and to live guide surgeries such as biopsy sample collection and accurate cervical cancer treatment.

The Effectiveness of Pap and Visual Inspection With Acetic Acid (VIAA) Tests in Cervical Dysplasia Screenings During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…The results could be used to alert healthcare workers regarding the negative effects of COVID-19 on these tests and the need for greater caution in applying and interpreting these results. The importance of external evaluation of cervical cytology and computer system implementation has been addressed previously [ 28 , 29 ]. In addition, revision of current health care policies appears warranted to reverse the substantial damage that this pandemic has inflicted on health care programs, specifically those for the prevention of cervical cancer [ 30 ].…”

Optical imaging for early detection of cervical cancer: state of the art and perspectives

“…The main advantage of this technique is that it does not require external reagents to stain the cervix and diagnose cancer. 50 Kobara et al compared NBI with colposcopy in detecting CIN and CIN2+ lesions. The study showed that NBI is highly sensitive (87%) than colposcopy (74%) but has a low specificity (50%) when compared with that of colposcopy (68%).…”

“…8(b). The main advantage of this technique is that it does not require external reagents to stain the cervix and diagnose cancer 50 . Kobara et al.…”

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“…Again, hyperspectral imaging-based approaches have many benefits, including the fact that they are non-invasive and may reduce the need for unnecessary biopsies. 5 However, the current spectrum imaging technique collects data by performing successive scanning in the spatial domain to cover the area that must be diagnosed. Therefore, collecting the necessary diagnosis data requires time because it takes time for current spectral or hyperspectral imaging techniques to scan the entire cervix.…”