Semi-Automatic Segmentation and Ultrasonic Characterization of Solid Breast Lesions

Abstract: Characterization of breast lesions is an essential prerequisite to detect breast cancer in an early stage. Automatic segmentation makes this categorization method robust by freeing it from subjectivity and human error. Both spectral and morphometric features are successfully used for differentiating between benign and malignant breast lesions. In this thesis, we used empirical mode decomposition method for semi-automatic segmentation. Sonographic features like ehcogenicity, heterogeneity, FNPA, margin definition, Hurst coefficient, compactness, roundness, aspect ratio, convexity, solidity, form factor were calculated to be used as our characterization parameters. All of these parameters did not give desired comparative results. But some of them namely echogenicity, heterogeneity, margin definition, aspect ratio and convexity gave good results and were used for characterization.