Fusion model integrating multi-sequence MRI radiomics and habitat imaging for predicting pathological complete response in breast cancer treated with neoadjuvant therapy

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to develop a predictive model integrating multi-sequence MRI radiomics, deep learning features, and habitat imaging to forecast pathological complete response (pCR) in breast cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant therapy (NAT). METHODS: A retrospective analysis included 203 breast cancer patients treated with NAT from May 2018 to January 2023. Patients were divided into training (n = 162) and test (n = 41) sets. Radiomics features were extracted from intratumoral and peritumoral regions in multi-sequence MRI (T2WI, DWI, and DCE-MRI) datasets. Habitat imaging was employed to analyze tumor subregions, characterizing heterogeneity within the tumor. We constructed and validated machine learning models, including a fusion model integrating all features, using Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) and Precision-Recall (PR) curves, decision curve analysis (DCA), and confusion matrices. Shapley Additive Explanations (SHAP) and Local Interpretable Model-agnostic Explanations (LIME) analyses were performed for model interpretability. RESULTS: The fusion model achieved superior predictive performance compared to single-region models, with AUCs of 0.913 (95% CI: 0.770-1.000) in the test set. PR curve analysis showed improved precision-recall balance, while DCA indicated higher clinical benefit. Confusion matrix analysis confirmed the model's classification accuracy. SHAP revealed DCE_LLL_DependenceUniformity as the most critical feature for predicting pCR and PC72 for non-pCR. LIME provided patient-specific insights into feature contributions. CONCLUSION: Integrating multi-dimensional MRI features with habitat imaging enhances pCR prediction in breast cancer. The fusion model offers a robust, non-invasive tool for guiding individualized treatment strategies while providing transparent interpretability through SHAP and LIME analyses.