Impact of clinical photographs on the accuracy and confidence in the histopathological diagnosis of mycosis fungoides

Abstract

Background: The histopathological diagnosis of MF is challenging, and there is significant overlap with benign inflammatory processes. Clinical features may be relevant in the assessment of skin biopsies. Methods: We provided photomicrographs to board-certified dermatopathologists and one hematopathologist with and without accompanying clinical photographs and assessed accuracy and confidence in diagnosing MF. Results: We found that access to clinical photographs improved diagnostic accuracy in both MF and non-MF (distractors); the degree of improvement was significantly higher in the non-MF/distractor category. Across all categories, diagnostic confidence level was higher when clinical images were available. Conclusion: These findings suggest that clinical images are useful in making an accurate diagnosis of MF, and may be particularly helpful in ruling it out when an inflammatory disorder is clinically suspected.