PATHOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS SUPPORT

• US 20090190821A1
• Filed: 01/23/2009
• Published: 07/30/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Marugame, Atsushi
• Granted Patent: US 8,787,650 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/133
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30024 Cell structures in vitro; Tissue sections in vitro
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30092 Stomach; Gastric
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0012 Biomedical image inspection
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/62 of area, perimeter, diameter or volume
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/69 Microscopic objects, e.g. biological cells or cellular parts

Abstract

A pathological diagnosis support apparatus into which a digital color image showing a stained tissue sample is input, the apparatus including: a display that performs a display operation; and an image processor that when the digital color image is input, extracts cell nucleus areas, cytoplasm areas and glandular cavity areas, respectively, based on luminance values of pixels of the digital color image, measures basic feature quantities representing features of shapes of the respective cell nucleus areas, cytoplasm areas and glandular cavity areas, which have been extracted, determines whether or not a particular kind of area that appears in a limited case according to the disease state of the tissue sample exists, for each of the cell nucleus areas, the cytoplasm areas and the glandular cavity areas based on the luminance values and the basic feature quantities, and measures structure feature quantities representing ways in which the cell nucleus areas are positioned, based on the basic feature quantities of the cell nucleus areas, and if the particular kind of area exists, extracts the particular kind of area and makes the display show it together with the structure feature quantities and the cell nucleus areas.

Claims

1. A pathological diagnosis support apparatus to which a digital color image showing a stained tissue sample is input, the apparatus comprising:

a display that performs a display operation; and

an image processor that when the digital color image is input, extracts cell nucleus areas, cytoplasm areas and glandular cavity areas, respectively, based on luminance values of pixels of the digital color image, measures basic feature quantities representing features of shapes of the respective cell nucleus areas, cytoplasm areas and glandular cavity areas, which have been extracted, determines whether or not a particular kind of area that appears in a limited case according to the disease state of the tissue sample exists, for each of the cell nucleus areas, the cytoplasm areas and the glandular cavity areas based on the luminance values and the basic feature quantities, and measures structure feature quantities representing the ways in which the cell nucleus areas are positioned, based on the basic feature quantities of the cell nucleus areas, and if the particular kind of area exists, extracts the particular kind of area and makes the display show it together with the structure feature quantities and the cell nucleus areas.

2. The pathological diagnosis support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processor includes:

a memory that stores the digital color image, the basic feature quantities and the structure feature quantities;

a feature measuring unit that measures a vector length, which is a value for characterizing each of the cell nucleus areas as having a round shape or an oval shape, and an angle value representing a direction of a major axis of each of the cell nucleus areas in relation to an angle, as the basic feature quantities; and

a display controller that makes the display show the cell nucleus areas in colors predetermined in relation to the vector lengths and the angle values.

3. The pathological diagnosis support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processor includes

an image measuring unit that extracts gland areas in which the cell nucleus areas surround the glandular cavity areas, based on differences in luminance value between adjacent pixels, and measures the number of extracted gland areas as the structure feature quantity.

4. The pathological diagnosis support apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image measuring unit measures a variation value representing a variation in the areas of the cell nucleus areas and a variation value representing a variation in the angle values in the digital color image, respectively, as the structure feature quantities.

5. The pathological diagnosis support apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the image processor includes

an image feature obtaining unit that extracts stained regions, which indicate stained regions in the tissue sample, based on the luminance values, measures the degree of circularity for each extracted stained region, which indicates similarity to a circle, selects stained regions whose measured degrees of circularity are larger than a predetermined value, identifies a stained region with the cell nucleus area positioned along a contour thereof and whose vector length is larger than a predetermined threshold value, from among the selected stained regions, as a signet ring cell, and extracts the identified signet ring cell as the particular kind of area.

6. The pathological diagnosis support apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the image feature obtaining unit identifies an area that includes a number of pixels whose luminance values fall within a predetermined range, the number of pixels exceeding a predetermined count, as a mucus area, and extracts the identified mucus area as the particular kind of area.

7. A method for supporting a pathological diagnosis using a digital color image showing a stained tissue sample, the method comprising:

extracting cell nucleus areas, cytoplasm areas and glandular cavity areas, respectively, based on luminance values of pixels of the digital color image;

measuring basic feature quantities representing features of shapes of the respective cell nucleus areas, cytoplasm areas and glandular cavity areas;

determining whether or not a particular kind of area that appears in a limited case according to the disease state of the tissue sample exists, for each of the cell nucleus areas, the cytoplasm areas and the glandular cavity areas based on the luminance values and the basic feature quantities;

measuring structure feature quantities representing ways in which the cell nucleus areas are positioned, based on the basic feature quantities of the cell nucleus areas; and

if the particular kind of area exists, extracting the particular kind of area and displaying it together with the structure feature quantities and the cell nucleus areas.

8. The pathological diagnosis support method according to claim 7, further comprising:

measuring a vector length, which is a value for characterizing each of the cell nucleus areas as having a round shape or an oval shape, and an angle value representing a direction of a major axis of each of the cell nucleus areas in relation to an angle, as the basic feature quantities; and

displaying the cell nucleus areas in colors predetermined in relation to the vector lengths and the angle values.

9. The pathological diagnosis support method according to claim 7, further comprising extracting gland areas in which the cell nucleus areas surround the glandular cavity areas, based on differences in luminance values between adjacent pixels, and measuring the number of extracted gland areas as the structure feature quantity.

10. The pathological diagnosis support method according to claim 9, further comprising measuring a variation value representing a variation in the areas of the cell nucleus areas and a variation value representing a variation in the angle values in the digital color image, respectively, as the structure feature quantities.

11. The pathological diagnosis support method according to claim 8, further comprising extracting stained regions, which indicate stained regions in the tissue sample, based on the luminance values, measuring the degree of circularity for each extracted stained region, which indicates similarity to a circle, selecting stained regions whose measured degrees of circularity are larger than a predetermined value, identifying a stained region with the cell nucleus area positioned along a contour thereof and whose vector length is larger than a predetermined threshold value, from among the selected stained regions, as a signet ring cell, and extracting the identified signet ring cell as the particular kind of area.

12. The pathological diagnosis support method according to claim 10, further comprising identifying an area that includes a number of pixels whose luminance values fall within a predetermined range, the number of pixels exceeding a predetermined count, as a mucus area, and extracting the identified mucus area as the particular kind of area.

13. A storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute processing for a digital color image showing a stained tissue sample, the processing comprising:

extracting cell nucleus areas, cytoplasm areas and glandular cavity areas, respectively, based on luminance values of pixels of the digital color image;

measuring basic feature quantities representing features of shapes of the respective cell nucleus areas, cytoplasm areas and glandular cavity areas, which have been extracted;

determining whether or not a particular kind of area that appears in a limited number of cases according to the disease state of the tissue sample exists, for each of the cell nucleus areas, the cytoplasm areas and the glandular cavity areas based on the luminance values and the basic feature quantities;

measuring structure feature quantities representing ways in which the cell nucleus areas are positioned, based on the basic feature quantities of the cell nucleus areas; and

if the particular kind of area exists, extracting the particular kind of area and displaying it together with the structure feature quantities and the cell nucleus areas.

14. The storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute processing according to claim 13, wherein the processing further comprises:

measuring a vector length, which is a value for characterizing each of the cell nucleus areas as having a round shape or an oval shape, and an angle value representing the direction of a major axis of each of the cell nucleus areas in relation to an angle, as the basic feature quantities; and

displaying the cell nucleus areas in colors predetermined in relation to the vector lengths and the angle values.

15. The storage medium storing a program for causing the computer to execute processing according to claim 13, wherein the processing further comprises extracting gland areas in which the cell nucleus areas surround the glandular cavity areas, based on differences in luminance values between adjacent pixels, and measuring the number of extracted gland areas as the structure feature quantity.

16. The storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute processing according to claim 15, wherein the processing further comprises measuring a variation value representing a variation in the areas of the cell nucleus areas and a variation value representing a variation in the angle values in the digital color image, respectively, as the structure feature quantities.

17. The storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute processing according to claim 14, wherein the processing further comprises extracting stained regions, which indicate stained regions in the tissue sample, based on the luminance values, measuring the degree of circularity for each extracted stained region, which indicates similarity to a circle, selecting stained regions whose measured degrees of circularity are larger than a predetermined value, identifying a stained region with the cell nucleus area positioned along a contour thereof and whose vector length is larger than a predetermined threshold value, from among the selected stained regions, as a signet ring cell, and extracting the identified signet ring cell as the particular kind of area.

18. The storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute processing according to claim 17, wherein the processing further comprises identifying an area that includes a number of pixels whose luminance values are included in a predetermined range, the number of pixels exceeding a predetermined count, as a mucus area, and extracting the identified mucus area as the particular kind of area.