Image registration in medicine: another optimization problem?

GUEST LECTURER
Edi Schreibmann, Emory University

ABSTRACT
Image registration in medicine is necessary in order to be able to align and compare images of the same patient acquired at different points in time. The registration is essentially an optimization problem that searches for the optimal transform parameters aligning two images under the guidance of a cost function constructed from anatomical features common in the input images.

The seminar will focus on the application of image registration to improve cancer treatment using four-dimensional (4D) imaging. 4D imaging (3 spatial dimensions + time) allows continuous sampling of patient anatomy during his/her breathing cycle, improving treatment of lung cancers as the treatment plan can be customized to the observed tumor motion. In this approach, image registration is needed to identify in the 4D image, tumor position as a function of time. Our initial experience in selecting and customizing the optimization components of an image registration scheme that tracks anatomical motion in 4D images will be presented.