Ensemble of classifiers based on deep learning for medical image recognition

The paper presents special forms of an ensemble of classifiers for analysis of medical images based on application of deep learning. The study analyzes different structures of convolutional neural networks applied in the recognition of two types of medical images: dermoscopic images for melanoma and mammograms for breast cancer. Two approaches to ensemble creation are proposed. In the first approach, the images are processed by a convolutional neural network and the flattened vector of image descriptors is subjected to feature selection by applying different selection methods. As a result, different sets of a limited number of diagnostic features are generated. In the next stage, these sets of features represent input attributes for the classical classifiers: support vector machine, a random forest of decision trees, and softmax. By combining different selection methods with these classifiers an ensemble classification system is created and integrated by majority voting. In the second approach, different structures of convolutional neural networks are directly applied as the members of the ensemble. The efficiency of the proposed classification systems is investigated and compared to medical data representing dermoscopic images of melanoma and breast cancer mammogram images. Thanks to fusion of the results of many classifiers forming an ensemble, accuracy and all other quality measures have been significantly increased for both types of medical images.