Differentiation between metastatic and tumour-free cervical lymph nodes in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma by grey-scale sonographic texture analysis

摘要

PurposePapillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is the most common thyroid cancer, and cervical lymph nodes (LNs) are the most common extrathyroid metastatic involvement. Early detection and reliable diagnosis of LNs can lead to improved cure rates and management costs. This study explored the potential of texture analysis for texture-based classification of tumour-free and metastatic cervical LNs of PTC in ultrasound imaging.