Analysis of a marker for cancer of the thyroid with a limit of detection
N. T. Longford, J. R. Tovar Cuevas, C. Alvear
Abstract
Limit of detection is a common problem in the analysis of data generated
by instruments that cannot detect very small concentrations or other
quantities, resulting in left-censored measurements. Methods intended for
data that is not subject to this problem are often difficult to adapt for
censoring. We apply a generic method for dealing with the limit of
detection in conjunction with a mixture analysis that could not be adapted
otherwise. The method is applied to relating the levels of thyroglobulin
in individuals with cancer of the thyroid before and after treatment
with radioactive iodine I-131.
Journal of Applied Statistics 44; to appear.
October 2016