Lung nodule diagnosis using 3D template matching

In this paper, to utilize the third dimension of Computed Tomography, regions of interest (ROI) slices were combined to form 3D ROI image and a 3D template was determined to find the structures with similar properties of nodules. Convolution of 3D ROI image with the proposed template strengthens the shapes similar to the template and weakens the other ones. False-positive (FP) per nodule and per slice versus diagnosis sensitivity were obtained. The Computer Aided Diagnosis system achieved 100% sensitivity with 0.83 FP per nodule and 0.46 FP per slice, when the nodule thickness was greater than or equal to 5.625 mm.