Inference for the difference in the area under the ROC curve derived from nested binary regression models Journal Article


Authors: Heller, G.; Seshan, V. E.; Moskowitz, C. S.; Gönen, M.
Article Title: Inference for the difference in the area under the ROC curve derived from nested binary regression models
Abstract: The area under the curve (AUC) statistic is a common measure of model performance in a binary regression model. Nested models are used to ascertain whether the AUC statistic increases when new factors enter the model. The regression coefficient estimates used in the AUC statistics are computed using the maximum rank correlation methodology. Typically, inference for the difference in AUC statistics from nested models is derived under asymptotic normality. In this work, it is demonstrated that the asymptotic normality is true only when at least one of the new factors is associated with the binary outcome. When none of the new factors are associated with the binary outcome, the asymptotic distribution for the difference in AUC statistics is a linear combination of chi-square random variables. Further, when at least one new factor is associated with the outcome and the population difference is small, a variance stabilizing reparameterization improves the asymptotic normality of the AUC difference statistic. A confidence interval using this reparameterization is developed and simulations are generated to determine their coverage properties. The derived confidence interval provides information on the magnitude of the added value of new factors and enables investigators to weigh the size of the improvement against potential costs associated with the new factors. A pancreatic cancer data example is used to illustrate this approach. © 2016 The Author.
Keywords: confidence interval; incremental value; area under the receiver operating characteristic curve; maximum rank correlation; nested models; risk classification model
Journal Title: Biostatistics
Volume: 18
Issue: 2
ISSN: 1465-4644
Publisher: Oxford University Press  
Date Published: 2017-04-01
Start Page: 260
End Page: 274
Language: English
DOI: 10.1093/biostatistics/kxw045
PROVIDER: scopus
PUBMED: 27655817
PMCID: PMC5965312
DOI/URL:
Notes: Article -- Export Date: 3 July 2017 -- Source: Scopus
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  1. Venkatraman Ennapadam Seshan
    382 Seshan
  2. Glenn Heller
    399 Heller
  3. Mithat Gonen
    1030 Gonen
  4. Chaya S. Moskowitz
    280 Moskowitz