Abstract
Background
Breast cancer is a major public health concern, and early diagnosis and classification are critical for effective treatment. Machine learning and deep learning techniques have shown great promise in the classification and diagnosis of breast cancer.
Purpose
In this review, we examine studies that have used these techniques for breast cancer classification and diagnosis, focusing on five groups of medical images: mammography, ultrasound, MRI, histology, and thermography. We discuss the use of five popular machine learning techniques, including Nearest Neighbor, SVM, Naive Bayesian Network, DT, and ANN, as well as deep learning architectures and convolutional neural networks.
Conclusion
Our review finds that machine learning and deep learning techniques have achieved high accuracy rates in breast cancer classification and diagnosis across various medical imaging modalities. Furthermore, these techniques have the potential to improve clinical decision-making and ultimately lead to better patient outcomes.
Similar content being viewed by others
Availability of data and materials
Not applicable.
References
Ahmed L, Iqbal MM, Aldabbas H, Khalid S, Saleem Y, Saeed S (2020) Images data practices for semantic segmentation of breast cancer using deep neural network. J Ambient Intell Humanized Comput 1–17
Akbar S, Akram MU, Sharif M, Tariq A, Khan SA (2018) Decision support system for detection of hypertensive retinopathy using arteriovenous ratio. Artif Intell Med 90:15–24
Al-Antari MA, Al-Masni MA, Choi M-T, Han S-M, Kim T-S (2018) A fully integrated computer-aided diagnosis system for digital X-ray mammograms via deep learning detection, segmentation, and classification. Int J Med Inform 117:44–54
Al-Antari MA, Han S-M, Kim T-S (2020) Evaluation of deep learning detection and classification towards computer-aided diagnosis of breast lesions in digital X-ray mammograms. Comput Methods Progr Biomed 196:105584
Alirezazadeh P, Hejrati B, Monsef-Esfahani A, Fathi A (2018) Representation learning-based unsupervised domain adaptation for classification of breast cancer histopathology images. Biocybern Biomed Eng 38(3):671–683
Al-Masni MA, Al-Antari MA, Park J-M, Gi G, Kim T-Y, Rivera P, Kim T-S (2018) Simultaneous detection and classification of breast masses in digital mammograms via a deep learning YOLO-based CAD system. Comput Methods Progr Biomed 157:85–94
Arafah M, Achmad A, Areni IS (2019) Face recognition system using Viola Jones, histograms of oriented gradients and multi-class support vector machine. In: Journal of Physics: Conference Series 2019 Oct 1 (vol. 1341, no. 4, p 042005). IOP Publishing
Baffa MFO, Lattari LG (2018) Convolutional neural networks for static and dynamic breast infrared imaging classification. In: Paper presented at the 2018 31st SIBGRAPI Conference on Graphics, Patterns and Images (SIBGRAPI), pp 174–181
Becker A, Masthoff M, Claussen J, Ford SJ, Roll W, Burg M, Eisenblätter M (2018) Multispectral optoacoustic tomography of the human breast: characterisation of healthy tissue and malignant lesions using a hybrid ultrasound-optoacoustic approach. Eur Radiol 28:602–609
Benhassine NE, Boukaache A, Boudjehem D (2020a) Classification of mammogram images using the energy probability in frequency domain and most discriminative power coefficients. Int J Imaging Syst Technol 30(1):45–56
Benhassine NE, Boukaache A, Boudjehem D (2020b) A new cad system for breast cancer classification using discrimination power analysis of Wavelet’s coefficients and support vector machine. J Mech Med Biol 20(06):2050036
Byra M, Piotrzkowska-Wróblewska H, Dobruch-Sobczak K, Nowicki A (2017) Combining Nakagami imaging and convolutional neural network for breast lesion classification. Paper presented at the 2017 IEEE International Ultrasonics Symposium (IUS)
Byra M, Galperin M, Ojeda-Fournier H, Olson L, O’Boyle M, Comstock C, Andre M (2019) Breast mass classification in sonography with transfer learning using a deep convolutional neural network and color conversion. Med Phys 46(2):746–755
Cabıoğlu Ç, Oğul H (2020) Computer-aided breast cancer diagnosis from thermal images using transfer learning. In: Paper presented at the Bioinformatics and Biomedical Engineering: Proceedings 8th International Work-Conference, IWBBIO 2020, Granada, Spain, pp 716–726
Chaurasia V, Pal S, Tiwari B (2018) Prediction of benign and malignant breast cancer using data mining techniques. J Algorithms Comput Technol 12(2):119–126
Chen D, Qian G, Shi C, Pan Q (2017) Breast cancer malignancy prediction using incremental combination of multiple recurrent neural networks. Paper presented at the International Conference on Neural Information Processing
Chougrad H, Zouaki H, Alheyane O (2018) Deep convolutional neural networks for breast cancer screening. Comput Methods Programs Biomed 157:19–30
da Silva IRR, Silva GDSL, de Souza RG, de Santana MA, da Silva WWA, de Lima ME, dos Santos WP (2020) Deep learning for early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease: a contribution and a brief review. Deep learning for data analytics. Elsevier, pp 63–78
Dargan S, Kumar M, Ayyagari MR, Kumar G (2020) A survey of deep learning and its applications: a new paradigm to machine learning. Arch Comput Methods Eng 27(4):1071–1092
de Freitas Barbosa VA, de Santana MA, Andrade MKS, de Lima RCF, dos Santos WP (2020) Deep-wavelet neural networks for breast cancer early diagnosis using mammary termographies. In: Deep learning for data analytics. Elsevier, pp. 99–124
Dhungel N, Carneiro G, Bradley AP (2017) A deep learning approach for the analysis of masses in mammograms with minimal user intervention. Med Image Anal 37:114–128
Dimitropoulos K, Barmpoutis P, Zioga C, Kamas A, Patsiaoura K, Grammalidis N (2017) Grading of invasive breast carcinoma through Grassmannian VLAD encoding. PLoS ONE 12(9):e0185110
Dontchos BN, Yala A, Barzilay R, Xiang J, Lehman CD (2021) External validation of a deep learning model for predicting mammographic breast density in routine clinical practice. Acad Radiol 28(4):475–480
Elgedawy MN (2017) Prediction of breast cancer using random forest, support vector machines and naïve Bayes. Int J Eng Comput Sci 6(1):19884–19889
Ekici S, Jawzal H (2020) Breast cancer diagnosis using thermography and convolutional neural networks. Med Hypotheses 137:109542
Fang Y, Zhao J, Hu L, Ying X, Pan Y, Wang X (2019) Image classification toward breast cancer using deeply-learned quality features. J vis Commun Image Represent 64:102609
Feng H, Cao J, Wang H, Xie Y, Yang D, Feng J, Chen B (2020) A knowledge-driven feature learning and integration method for breast cancer diagnosis on multi-sequence MRI. Magn Reson Imaging 69:40–48
Gecer B, Aksoy S, Mercan E, Shapiro LG, Weaver DL, Elmore JG (2018) Detection and classification of cancer in whole slide breast histopathology images using deep convolutional networks. Pattern Recogn 84:345–356
Gibson E, Li W, Sudre C, Fidon L, Shakir DI, Wang G, Hu Y (2018) NiftyNet: a deep-learning platform for medical imaging. Comput Methods Prog Biomed 158:113–122
Hai J, Tan H, Chen J, Wu M, Qiao K, Xu J, Yan B (2019) Multi-level features combined end-to-end learning for automated pathological grading of breast cancer on digital mammograms. Comput Med Imaging Graph 71:58–66
Han S, Kang H-K, Jeong J-Y, Park M-H, Kim W, Bang W-C, Seong Y-K (2017) A deep learning framework for supporting the classification of breast lesions in ultrasound images. Phys Med Biol 62(19):7714
Henriksen EL, Carlsen JF, Vejborg IM, Nielsen MB, Lauridsen CA (2019) The efficacy of using computer-aided detection (CAD) for detection of breast cancer in mammography screening: a systematic review. Acta Radiol 60(1):13–18
Houssein EH, Emam MM, Ali AA, Suganthan PN (2021) Deep and machine learning techniques for medical imaging-based breast cancer: a comprehensive review. Expert Syst Appl 167:114161
Hu Z, Tang J, Wang Z, Zhang K, Zhang L, Sun Q (2018) Deep learning for image-based cancer detection and diagnosis—a survey. Pattern Recogn 83:134–149
Kaur P, Singh G, Kaur P (2019) Intellectual detection and validation of automated mammogram breast cancer images by multi-class SVM using deep learning classification. Inform Med Unlocked 16:100151
Kavita P, Alli DR, Rao AB (2022) Study of image fusion optimization techniques for medical applications. Int J Cogn Comput Eng 3:136–143
Khan MA, Sharif M, Akram T, Yasmin M, Nayak RS (2019) Stomach deformities recognition using rank-based deep features selection. J Med Syst 43(12):1–15
Kim C–M, Hong EJ, Chung K, Park RC (2020) Driver facial expression analysis using LFA-CRNN-based feature extraction for health-risk decisions. Appl Sci 10(8):2956
Kooi T, Litjens G, Van Ginneken B, Gubern-Mérida A, Sánchez CI, Mann R, Karssemeijer N (2017) Large scale deep learning for computer aided detection of mammographic lesions. Med Image Anal 35:303–312
Korotcov A, Tkachenko V, Russo DP, Ekins S (2017) Comparison of deep learning with multiple machine learning methods and metrics using diverse drug discovery data sets. Mol Pharm 14(12):4462–4475
Kumar V, Webb JM, Gregory A, Denis M, Meixner DD, Bayat M, Alizad A (2018) Automated and real-time segmentation of suspicious breast masses using convolutional neural network. PLoS ONE 13(5):e0195816
Li H, Zhuang S, Li D-A, Zhao J, Ma Y (2019) Benign and malignant classification of mammogram images based on deep learning. Biomed Signal Process Control 51:347–354
Mabrouk MS, Afify HM, Marzouk SY (2019) Fully automated computer-aided diagnosis system for micro calcifications cancer based on improved mammographic image techniques. Ain Shams Eng J 10(3):517–527
Malathi M, Sinthia P, Farzana F, Mary GAA (2021) Breast cancer detection using active contour and classification by deep belief network. Mater Today: Proc 45:2721–2724
Malekmohammadi A, Barekatrezaei S, Kozegar E, Soryani M (2023) Mass detection in automated 3-D breast ultrasound using a patch Bi-ConvLSTM network. Ultrasonics 129:106891
Mohammed MA, Al-Khateeb B, Rashid AN, Ibrahim DA, Abd Ghani MK, Mostafa SA (2018) Neural network and multi-fractal dimension features for breast cancer classification from ultrasound images. Comput Electr Eng 70:871–882
Mohanty F, Rup S, Dash B, Majhi B, Swamy M (2020) An improved scheme for digital mammogram classification using weighted chaotic salp swarm algorithm-based kernel extreme learning machine. Appl Soft Comput 91:106266
Murtaza G, Shuib L, Abdul Wahab AW, Mujtaba G, Nweke HF, Al-garadi MA, Azmi NA (2020) Deep learning-based breast cancer classification through medical imaging modalities: state of the art and research challenges. Artif Intell Rev 53(3):1655–1720
Nilashi M, Ibrahim O, Ahmadi H, Shahmoradi L (2017) A knowledge-based system for breast cancer classification using fuzzy logic method. Telemat Inform 34(4):133–144
Obaid OI, Mohammed MA, Ghani M, Mostafa A, Taha F (2018) Evaluating the performance of machine learning techniques in the classification of Wisconsin Breast Cancer. Int J Eng Technol 7(436):160–166
Opieliński KJ, Pruchnicki P, Szymanowski P, Szepieniec WK, Szweda H, Świś E, Bułkowski M (2018) Multimodal ultrasound computer-assisted tomography: an approach to the recognition of breast lesions. Comput Med Imaging Graph 65:102–114
Paramanandham N, Rajendiran K (2018) Multi sensor image fusion for surveillance applications using hybrid image fusion algorithm. Multimed Tools Appl 77:12405–12436
Pöhlmann ST, Lim YY, Harkness E, Pritchard S, Taylor CJ, Astley SM (2017) Three-dimensional segmentation of breast masses from digital breast tomosynthesis images. J Med Imaging 4(3):034007–034007
Qi X, Zhang L, Chen Y, Pi Y, Chen Y, Lv Q, Yi Z (2019) Automated diagnosis of breast ultrasonography images using deep neural networks. Med Image Anal 52:185–198
Rahman ASA (2019) Breast mass tumor classification from mammograms using deep learning. Hamad Bin Khalifa University
Rajinikanth V, Satapathy SC, Fernandes SL, Nachiappan S (2017) Entropy based segmentation of tumor from brain MR images—a study with teaching learning based optimization. Pattern Recogn Lett 94:87–95
Ribli D, Horváth A, Unger Z, Pollner P, Csabai I (2018) Detecting and classifying lesions in mammograms with deep learning. Sci Rep 8(1):1–7
Romeo V, Accardo G, Perillo T, Basso L, Garbino N, Nicolai E, Salvatore M (2021) Assessment and prediction of response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer: a comparison of imaging modalities and future perspectives. Cancers 13(14):3521
Roslidar R, Saddami K, Arnia F, Syukri M, Munadi K (2019) A study of fine-tuning CNN models based on thermal imaging for breast cancer classification. In: Paper presented at the 2019 IEEE International Conference on Cybernetics and Computational Intelligence (CyberneticsCom), pp 77–81
Roy K, Banik D, Bhattacharjee D, Nasipuri M (2019) Patch-based system for classification of breast histology images using deep learning. Comput Med Imaging Graph 71:90–103
Ryser MD, Lange J, Inoue LY, O’Meara ES, Gard C, Miglioretti DL, Etzioni RB (2022) Estimation of breast cancer overdiagnosis in a US breast screening cohort. Ann Internal Med 175(4):471–478
Salh CH, Ali AM (2022) Comprehensive study for breast cancer using deep learning and traditional machine learning. Zanco J Pure Appl Sci 34(2):22–36
Sánchez-Ruiz D, Olmos-Pineda I, Olvera-López JA (2020) Automatic region of interest segmentation for breast thermogram image classification. Pattern Recogn Lett 135:72–81
Saxena S, Gyanchandani M (2020) Machine learning methods for computer-aided breast cancer diagnosis using histopathology: a narrative review. J Med Imaging Radiat Sci 51(1):182–193
Senkamalavalli R, Bhuvaneswari T (2017) Improved classification of breast cancer data using hybrid techniques. Int J Adv Eng Res Sci 5(5):237467
Sharma S, Aggarwal A, Choudhury T (2018) Breast cancer detection using machine learning algorithms. Paper presented at the 2018 International conference on computational techniques, electronics and mechanical systems (CTEMS)
Shen R, Yan K, Tian K, Jiang C, Zhou K (2019) Breast mass detection from the digitized X-ray mammograms based on the combination of deep active learning and self-paced learning. Futur Gener Comput Syst 101:668–679
Smith RA, Andrews KS, Brooks D, Fedewa SA, Manassaram-Baptiste D, Saslow D, Wender RC (2018) Cancer screening in the United States, 2018: a review of current American Cancer Society guidelines and current issues in cancer screening. CA Cancer J Clin 68(4):297–316
Song Y, Zou JJ, Chang H, Cai W (2017) Adapting fisher vectors for histopathology image classification. Paper presented at the 2017 IEEE 14th international symposium on biomedical imaging (ISBI 2017)
Stenroos O (2017) Object detection from images using convolutional neural networks
Sudharshan P, Petitjean C, Spanhol F, Oliveira LE, Heutte L, Honeine P (2019) Multiple instance learning for histopathological breast cancer image classification. Expert Syst Appl 117:103–111
Suzuki S, Zhang X, Homma N, Ichiji K, Sugita N, Kawasumi Y, Yoshizawa M (2016) Mass detection using deep convolutional neural network for mammographic computer-aided diagnosis. Paper presented at the 2016 55th Annual conference of the society of instrument and control engineers of Japan (SICE)
Swiderski B, Kurek J, Osowski S, Kruk M, Barhoumi W (2017) Deep learning and non-negative matrix factorization in recognition of mammograms. Paper presented at the Eighth International Conference on Graphic and Image Processing (ICGIP 2016)
Tahmooresi M, Afshar A, Rad BB, Nowshath K, Bamiah M (2018) Early detection of breast cancer using machine learning techniques. J Telecommun Electron Comput Eng JTEC 10(3–2):21–27
Ting FF, Tan YJ, Sim KS (2019) Convolutional neural network improvement for breast cancer classification. Expert Syst Appl 120:103–115
Üncü YA, Sevim G, Canpolat M (2022) Approaches to preclinical studies with heterogeneous breast phantom using reconstruction and three-dimensional image processing algorithms for diffuse optical imaging. Int J Imaging Syst Technol 32(1):343–353
Wahab N, Khan A, Lee YS (2017) Two-phase deep convolutional neural network for reducing class skewness in histopathological images based breast cancer detection. Comput Biol Med 85:86–97
Wang L (2017) Early diagnosis of breast cancer. Sensors 17(7):1572
Wang H, Zheng B, Yoon SW, Ko HS (2018) A support vector machine-based ensemble algorithm for breast cancer diagnosis. Eur J Oper Res 267(2):687–699
Wang P, Song Q, Li Y, Lv S, Wang J, Li L, Zhang H (2020a) Cross-task extreme learning machine for breast cancer image classification with deep convolutional features. Biomed Signal Process Control 57:101789
Wang Y, Choi EJ, Choi Y, Zhang H, Jin GY, Ko S-B (2020b) Breast cancer classification in automated breast ultrasound using multiview convolutional neural network with transfer learning. Ultrasound Med Biol 46(5):1119–1132
Xu Y, Wang Y, Yuan J, Cheng Q, Wang X, Carson PL (2019) Medical breast ultrasound image segmentation by machine learning. Ultrasonics 91:1–9
Yan R, Ren F, Wang Z, Wang L, Zhang T, Liu Y, Zhang F (2020) Breast cancer histopathological image classification using a hybrid deep neural network. Methods 173:52–60
Yang Z, Ran L, Zhang S, Xia Y, Zhang Y (2019) EMS-Net: Ensemble of multiscale convolutional neural networks for classification of breast cancer histology images. Neurocomputing 366:46–53
Yap MH, Pons G, Marti J, Ganau S, Sentis M, Zwiggelaar R, Marti R (2017) Automated breast ultrasound lesions detection using convolutional neural networks. IEEE J Biomed Health Inform 22(4):1218–1226
Yari Y, Nguyen TV, Nguyen HT (2020) Deep learning applied for histological diagnosis of breast cancer. IEEE Access 8:162432–162448
Yassin NI, Omran S, El Houby EM, Allam H (2018) Machine learning techniques for breast cancer computer aided diagnosis using different image modalities: a systematic review. Comput Methods Programs Biomed 156:25–45
Yue W, Wang Z, Chen H, Payne A, Liu X (2018) Machine learning with applications in breast cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Designs 2(2):13
Zuluaga-Gomez J, Al Masry Z, Benaggoune K, Meraghni S, Zerhouni N (2021) A CNN-based methodology for breast cancer diagnosis using thermal images. Comput Methods Biomech Biomed Eng: Imaging Vis 9(2):131–145
Funding
This work has been conducted with no specific funding to declare.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
MR and HF conceived the idea. HF supervised the procedure and verified the results and discussion. HL wrote the first draft, and HF edited the manuscript. MR and HF prepared the final draft.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that the study was carried out independently of any financial or commercial interests.
Ethical approval and consent to participate
Not applicable.
Consent for publication
Not applicable.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Radak, M., Lafta, H.Y. & Fallahi, H. Machine learning and deep learning techniques for breast cancer diagnosis and classification: a comprehensive review of medical imaging studies. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 149, 10473–10491 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00432-023-04956-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00432-023-04956-z