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Dear Esteemed Colleagues and Researchers,</div>
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We are pleased to announce and cordially invite you to participate in the <b>ICIAP 2025 OCT Cyst Challenge</b>, a satellite event of the 23rd International Conference on Image Analysis and Processing (ICIAP 2025). This exciting competition, further detailed
on our dedicated website: <a href="https://sites.google.com/community.unipa.it/iciap2025-oct-cystchallenge?usp=sharing" target="_blank" id="OWA3ba77385-eea2-3991-c8f9-b9336ab09961" class="OWAAutoLink" title="https://sites.google.com/community.unipa.it/iciap2025-oct-cystchallenge?usp=sharing" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-auth="NotApplicable" data-linkindex="0" style="margin: 0px;">
https://sites.google.com/community.unipa.it/iciap2025-oct-cystchallenge?usp=sharing</a>, aims to foster innovation and advance the state-of-the-art in medical image analysis.</div>
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<b>Our primary objectives for this challenge are to:</b></div>
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<b>Benchmark and compare novel algorithms</b> for the automated segmentation of cysts in Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) images.</li><li style="font-family: Aptos, Aptos_EmbeddedFont, Aptos_MSFontService, Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; color: black; direction: ltr;">
<b>Promote the development of robust and accurate methodologies</b> capable of handling the inherent variability and complexities present in OCT data.</li><li style="font-family: Aptos, Aptos_EmbeddedFont, Aptos_MSFontService, Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; color: black; direction: ltr;">
<b>Establish a publicly available resource</b> of annotated OCT images and evaluation metrics to facilitate future research in this critical area.</li><li style="font-family: Aptos, Aptos_EmbeddedFont, Aptos_MSFontService, Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; color: black; direction: ltr;">
<b>Encourage collaboration and knowledge sharing</b> within the medical imaging and computer vision communities.</li></ul>
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<b>The task of accurate cyst segmentation in OCT images holds significant importance for several reasons:</b></div>
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OCT provides high-resolution, cross-sectional visualizations of retinal structures, making it indispensable for the diagnosis and management of numerous ocular diseases. Precise and reliable cyst segmentation is crucial for:</div>
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<b>Improving diagnostic accuracy and prognostic assessment</b> in conditions such as diabetic macular edema and age-related macular degeneration.</li><li style="font-family: Aptos, Aptos_EmbeddedFont, Aptos_MSFontService, Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; color: black; direction: ltr;">
<b>Facilitating quantitative analysis</b> of cyst volume, morphology, and spatial distribution, enabling objective disease monitoring and treatment response evaluation.</li><li style="font-family: Aptos, Aptos_EmbeddedFont, Aptos_MSFontService, Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; color: black; direction: ltr;">
<b>Potentially reducing the burden on clinicians</b> by providing automated tools for time-consuming manual segmentation tasks.</li><li style="font-family: Aptos, Aptos_EmbeddedFont, Aptos_MSFontService, Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; color: black; direction: ltr;">
<b>Advancing research into the pathogenesis and progression of cyst-related ocular pathologies.</b></li></ul>
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We believe that this challenge presents a unique opportunity for researchers to contribute meaningfully to a clinically relevant problem with the potential for significant impact on patient care. By participating, you will have the chance to test your algorithms
on a challenging dataset, compare your results with leading international teams, and contribute to the advancement of this vital field.</div>
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<b>Key Important Dates:</b></div>
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<div style="direction: ltr; margin: 0px;"><b>19/04:</b> Dataset Release</div>
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<div style="direction: ltr; margin: 0px;"><b>15/06:</b> Submission Deadline for Algorithms and papers</div>
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<div style="direction: ltr; margin: 0px;"><b>01/07:</b> Notification of Results</div>
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<div style="direction: ltr; margin: 0px;"><b>15-19/09:</b> Workshop and Results Presentation at ICIAP 2025</div>
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We strongly encourage you to visit the competition website for comprehensive details regarding the dataset, evaluation metrics, submission guidelines, and participation instructions.</div>
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We look forward to your active participation in the ICIAP 2025 OCT Cyst Challenge and to witnessing the innovative solutions that will emerge from this collaborative effort.</div>
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Sincerely,</div>
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The Organizing Committee of the ICIAP 2025 - OCT-Cyst Challenge</div>
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