A Survey of Computer-aided Detection of Breast Cancer with Mammography

Breast cancer is one of the common malignant tumors among women. According to the statistics, the number of new breast cancer for the women worldwide is about 1.67 million in 2012. This high morbidity accounts for about 25% in all cancers [1]. If breast cancer can be early detected, it is one of the most treatable malignancies [2]. From 1990s, the mortality of breast cancer has an obvious decrease in developed countries, such as in Europe and America [3,4]. Different imaging modalities are under different theories and show different characteristics in breast cancer detection. The mammography is one of the most widely used methods for breast cancer screening [5]. When taken a mammogram, the breast needs to be compressed. In screening mammography, two breasts are imaged and two different views are taken for each breast. The two views are cranio-caudal (CC) and mediolateral-oblique (MLO). An example for the four view mammograms is shown in Figure 1. The CC view is taken from a top view. Only few mammograms show the pectoral muscle. The MLO view is taken from an oblique view. The pectoral muscle is depicted obliquely and stretches down to the level of the nipple or further down. The shape of the muscle should be curve or bulge outward.