Inter-observer variability in the classification of ovarian cancer cell type using microscopy: a pilot study

Marios A. Gavrielides; Brigitte M. Ronnett; Russell Vang; Jeffrey D. Seidman

doi:10.1117/12.2082264

19 March 2015 Inter-observer variability in the classification of ovarian cancer cell type using microscopy: a pilot study

Marios A. Gavrielides, Brigitte M. Ronnett, Russell Vang, Jeffrey D. Seidman

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9420, Medical Imaging 2015: Digital Pathology; 94200D (2015) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2082264
Event: SPIE Medical Imaging, 2015, Orlando, Florida, United States

Abstract

Studies have shown that different cell types of ovarian carcinoma have different molecular profiles, exhibit different behavior, and that patients could benefit from typespecific treatment. Different cell types display different histopathology features, and different criteria are used for each cell type classification. Inter-observer variability for the task of classifying ovarian cancer cell types is an under-examined area of research. This study served as a pilot study to quantify observer variability related to the classification of ovarian cancer cell types and to extract valuable data for designing a validation study of digital pathology (DP) for this task. Three observers with expertise in gynecologic pathology reviewed 114 cases of ovarian cancer with optical microscopy, with specific guidelines for classifications into distinct cell types. For 93 cases all 3 pathologists agreed on the same cell type, for 18 cases 2 out of 3 agreed, and for 3 cases there was no agreement. Across cell types with a minimum sample size of 10 cases, agreement between all three observers was {91.1%, 80.0%, 90.0%, 78.6%, 100.0%, 61.5%} for the high grade serous carcinoma, low grade serous carcinoma, endometrioid, mucinous, clear cell, and carcinosarcoma cell types respectively. These results indicate that unanimous agreement varied over a fairly wide range. However, additional research is needed to determine the importance of these differences in comparison studies. These results will be used to aid in the design and sizing of such a study comparing optical and digital pathology. In addition, the results will help in understanding the potential role computer-aided diagnosis has in helping to improve the agreement of pathologists for this task.

Citation Download Citation

Marios A. Gavrielides, Brigitte M. Ronnett, Russell Vang, and Jeffrey D. Seidman "Inter-observer variability in the classification of ovarian cancer cell type using microscopy: a pilot study", Proc. SPIE 9420, Medical Imaging 2015: Digital Pathology, 94200D (19 March 2015); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2082264

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available