AAPM task group 234 report: Virtual tools for the evaluation of new 3D/4D breast imaging systems

Abstract Simulation methods in breast imaging offer advantages over clinical trials in terms of improved reproducibility, reduced need for patient exposure to radiation, increased flexibility, and more clearly defined ground truth. Simulation also allows for improved representation of anatomical variations and variations in acquisition parameters and breast positioning related to multimodality imaging. The increasing use of virtual clinical trials (VCTs) to assess breast imaging systems has introduced a demand to optimize protocols for simulation studies. This work will contribute to developing standards for evaluation tools for 3D/4D breast imaging systems and will ultimately reduce the reliance on clinical trials for emerging systems. This report reviews key aspects of VCTs, including the simulation of realistic breast anatomy, the generation of synthetic images from virtual phantoms, the use of model observers to assess imaging system performance, and methods to analyze observer outputs. Each section reviews the state of the science and recommends approaches for accomplishing tasks related to the individual aspects of VCTs. The report also reviews the experience of designing and using a simulation approach from the industrial and regulatory perspective. Finally, future steps in the development of VCTs are suggested. breast cancer imaging, evaluation of imaging systems, virtual trials

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Publication Details

Journal
Medical Physics
Published
2025-12-25
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/mp.70215
Primary Topic
Digital Radiography and Breast Imaging
Type
article
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article

AAPM task group 234 report: Virtual tools for the evaluation of new 3D/4D breast imaging systems

Alistair Mackenzie, Kyle J. Myers, Ingrid Reiser, Stephen J. Glick et al.
Medical Physics
Digital Radiography and Breast Imaging
article

AAPM task group 234 report: Virtual tools for the evaluation of new 3D/4D breast imaging systems

Alistair Mackenzie, Kyle J. Myers, Ingrid Reiser, Stephen J. Glick, Ali N. Avanaki, Howard C. Gifford, Anna Jerebko, Craig K. Abbey, Joseph Y. Lo, Predrag R. Bakić, L Cockmartin, Mini Das, SuBok Park, Hilde Bosmans, Matthew A. Kupinski, Nooshin Kiarashi, Raymond J. Acciavatti, Ioannis Sechopoulos, Andreu Badal, Mitchell M. Goodsitt, Kristina Bliznakova, Heang‐Ping Chan, David D. Pokrajac, Ann‐Katherine Carton, Andrew D. A. Maidment, Robert M. Nishikawa, Rongping Zeng
article en

Abstract

Abstract Simulation methods in breast imaging offer advantages over clinical trials in terms of improved reproducibility, reduced need for patient exposure to radiation, increased flexibility, and more clearly defined ground truth. Simulation also allows for improved representation of anatomical variations and variations in acquisition parameters and breast positioning related to multimodality imaging. The increasing use of virtual clinical trials (VCTs) to assess breast imaging systems has introduced a demand to optimize protocols for simulation studies. This work will contribute to developing standards for evaluation tools for 3D/4D breast imaging systems and will ultimately reduce the reliance on clinical trials for emerging systems. This report reviews key aspects of VCTs, including the simulation of realistic breast anatomy, the generation of synthetic images from virtual phantoms, the use of model observers to assess imaging system performance, and methods to analyze observer outputs. Each section reviews the state of the science and recommends approaches for accomplishing tasks related to the individual aspects of VCTs. The report also reviews the experience of designing and using a simulation approach from the industrial and regulatory perspective. Finally, future steps in the development of VCTs are suggested. breast cancer imaging, evaluation of imaging systems, virtual trials

Medical PhysicsVol. 53(1)
United States Food and Drug Administration (US), Arizona Department of Education (US), Radboud University Nijmegen (NL), Medical University of Varna (BG), University of Nis (RS), University of California, Santa Barbara (US), Oregon Health & Science University (US), University of Pittsburgh (US), Duke University (US), Lund University (SE), University of Michigan (US), Radboud University Medical Center (NL), University of Illinois Chicago (US), University of Chicago (US), The Coordinating Center (US), Evidation Health (United States) (US), General Electric (Czechia) (CZ), Banner - University Medical Center Tucson (US), General Electric (France) (FR), Dentsply Sirona (United States) (US), University of Houston (US), University of Pennsylvania (US), KU Leuven (BE)
Partnerships for the goals
Openalex Percentile: Top 28%
Digital Radiography and Breast Imaging
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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