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

Bakic, Predrag R. LU ; Myers, Kyle J. ; Abbey, Craig K. ; Acciavatti, Raymond J. ; Avanaki, Ali N. ; Badal, Andreu ; Bliznakova, Kristina ; Bosmans, Hilde T. ; Carton, Ann Katherine and Chan, Heang Ping , et al. (2026) In Medical Physics 53(1).
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... (More)

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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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Medical Physics
volume
53
issue
1
article number
e70215
publisher
John Wiley & Sons Inc.
external identifiers
  • scopus:105026311952
ISSN
0094-2405
DOI
10.1002/mp.70215
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © 2025 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.
id
db097b14-2f7d-4f92-a6d8-a11224be35ea
date added to LUP
2026-03-24 12:51:30
date last changed
2026-03-24 15:22:54
@article{db097b14-2f7d-4f92-a6d8-a11224be35ea,
  abstract     = {{<p>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.</p>}},
  author       = {{Bakic, Predrag R. and Myers, Kyle J. and Abbey, Craig K. and Acciavatti, Raymond J. and Avanaki, Ali N. and Badal, Andreu and Bliznakova, Kristina and Bosmans, Hilde T. and Carton, Ann Katherine and Chan, Heang Ping and Cockmartin, Lesley and Das, Mini and Gifford, Howard C. and Glick, Stephen J. and Goodsitt, Mitchell M. and Jerebko, Anna K. and Kiarashi, Nooshin and Kupinski, Matthew A. and Lo, Joseph Y. and Mackenzie, Alistair and Maidment, Andrew D.A. and Nishikawa, Robert M. and Park, Subok and Pokrajac, David D. and Reiser, Ingrid S. and Sechopoulos, Ioannis and Zeng, Rongping}},
  issn         = {{0094-2405}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  publisher    = {{John Wiley & Sons Inc.}},
  series       = {{Medical Physics}},
  title        = {{AAPM task group 234 report : Virtual tools for the evaluation of new 3D/4D breast imaging systems}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/mp.70215}},
  doi          = {{10.1002/mp.70215}},
  volume       = {{53}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}