Method and system for digital image based tissue independent simultaneous nucleus cytoplasm and membrane quantitation

An automated method for simultaneously identifying a plurality of pixels in a digital image of a biological tissue stained with a chemical compound, comprising:

• considering a first color plane of a plurality of pixels in a foreground of-the digital image for simultaneous identification of cell cytoplasm and cell membrane pixels, wherein the digital image has been processed to remove background portions of the digital image and to remove counterstained components of the digital image;
• determining a threshold level between cell cytoplasm and cell membrane pixels in the foreground of the digital image;
• and
• determining simultaneously with a selected pixel and its eight neighbors from the foreground if the selected pixel is cell cytoplasm pixel, a cell membrane pixel or a transitional pixel in the digital image using the determined threshold level.

An automated digital image based, biological tissue independent simultaneous analysis system, comprising in combination:

• means for identifying a plurality areas of interest in a digital image of a biological tissue sample to which a chemical compound or a biomarker has been applied, for eliminating a plurality of pixels comprising a background portion of the identified plurality of areas of interest creating modified plurality of areas of interest and for eliminating a plurality of pixels comprising counterstained components in the tissue sample from the modified plurality of areas of interest;
• means for simultaneously identifying a plurality pixels comprising cell components including at least cell cytoplasm and cell membranes from the biological tissue sample in the modified plurality of areas of interest;
• and
• means for automatically classifying cell components in the identified plurality of pixels to determine a medical conclusion.