Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40098034›Full record

ArticleCancer imaging : the official publication of the International Cancer Imaging Society2025

Deep learning-based fully automated detection and segmentation of pelvic lymph nodes on diffusion-weighted images for prostate cancer: a multicenter study.

Zhaonan Sun, Pengsheng Wu, Tongtong Zhao, Ge Gao, Huihui Wang, Xiaodong Zhang, Xiaoying Wang

Abstract readMulticenter Study
In one paragraph

Article in Cancer imaging : the official publication of the International Cancer Imaging Society, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Zhaonan SunDepartment of Radiology, Peking University First Hospital, No.8 Xishiku Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, 100034, China.
Pengsheng WuBeijing Smart Tree Medical Technology Co. Ltd., Beijing, China.
Tongtong ZhaoDepartment of Radiology, Peking University First Hospital, No.8 Xishiku Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, 100034, China.
Ge GaoDepartment of Radiology, Peking University First Hospital, No.8 Xishiku Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, 100034, China.
Huihui WangDepartment of Radiology, Peking University First Hospital, No.8 Xishiku Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, 100034, China.
Xiaodong ZhangDepartment of Radiology, Peking University First Hospital, No.8 Xishiku Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, 100034, China.
Xiaoying WangDepartment of Radiology, Peking University First Hospital, No.8 Xishiku Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, 100034, China. wangxiaoying@bjmu.edu.cn.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8616-0782

Funding

Capital Health Research and Development of Special Fund 2020-2-40710
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAccurate identification and evaluation of lymph nodes (LNs) in prostate cancer (PCa) patients is crucial for effective staging but can be time-consuming. We utilized a 3D V-Net model to improve the efficiency and accuracy of LN detection and segmentation.

methodsUtilizing pelvic diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) scans, the 3D V-Net framework underwent training on a dataset comprising data from a hospital with 1,151 patients, encompassing 32,507 annotated LNs, following data augmentation procedures. Subsequently, external validation was conducted on data from 401 patients across three additional hospitals, encompassing 7,707 LNs. The segmentation performance was evaluated using the Dice similarity coefficient (DSC). The comparison between automated and manual segmentation regarding the short diameter and volume of LNs was conducted using Bland-Altman plots and correlation analysis. The performance for suspicious metastatic LN detection (short diameter > 8 mm) was evaluated using sensitivity, positive predictive value (PPV), and per-patient false-positive rate (FP/vol) at the LN level and sensitivity, specificity, and PPV at the patient level.

resultsIn the external validation test dataset, the model achieved a DSC of 0.77-0.82 for all, suspicious, and largest LNs. The model achieved a sensitivity, PPV, and FP/vol of 60.1% (95% confidence interval (CI), 57.6-62.6%), 79.2% (95% CI, 76.6-81.5%), and 0.56 at the LN level, respectively. At the patient level, the model achieved a sensitivity, specificity, and PPV of 81.1% (95% CI, 76.5-85.0%), 75.6% (95% CI, 65.1-83.8%), and 93.2% (95% CI, 89.7-95.6%), respectively. The model achieved a strong correlation and good consistency between the short diameter and volume of the automatically segmented and manually annotated LNs.

conclusionThis 3D V-Net model can segment LNs effectively based on pelvic DWI images for PCa and holds great potential for facilitating N-staging in clinical practice.

Indexed as

Deep LearningDiffusion Magnetic Resonance ImagingLymph NodesProstatic NeoplasmsAgedHumansLymphatic MetastasisMaleMiddle AgedPelvisSensitivity and SpecificityDeep learningDetectionLymph nodesProstate cancerSegmentation

Identifiers

PMID40098034
PMCPMC11912796

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.