Automated microvascular invasion prediction of hepatocellular carcinoma via deep relation reasoning from dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major global health concern, with microvascular invasion (MVI) being a critical prognostic factor linked to early recurrence and poor survival. Preoperative MVI prediction remains challenging, but recent advancements in dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) imaging combined with artificial intelligence show promise in improving prediction accuracy. CEUS offers real-time visualization of tumor vascularity, providing unique insights into MVI characteristics. This study proposes a novel deep relation reasoning approach to address the challenges of modeling intricate temporal relationships and extracting complex spatial features from CEUS video frames. Our method integrates CEUS video sequences and introduces a visual graph reasoning framework that correlates intratumoral and peritumoral features across various imaging phases. The system employs dual-path feature extraction, MVI pattern topology construction, Graph Convolutional Network learning, and an MVI pattern discovery module to capture complex features while providing interpretable results. Experimental findings demonstrate that our approach surpasses existing state-of-the-art models in accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity for MVI prediction. The system achieved superiors accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and AUC. These advancements promise to enhance HCC diagnosis and management, potentially revolutionizing patient care. The method’s robust performance, even with limited data, underscores its potential for practical clinical application in improving the efficacy and efficiency of HCC patient diagnosis and treatment planning.