Bayesian multiple change-points estimation for hazard with censored survival data from exponential distributions

Abstract

Change-point models are generative models in which the underlying generative parameters change at different points in time. A Bayesian approach to the problem of hazard change with unknown multiple change-points is developed using informative priors for censored survival data. For the exponential distribution, piecewise constant hazard is considered with change-point estimation. The stochastic approximation Monte Carlo algorithm is implemented for efficient calculation of the posterior distributions. The performance of the proposed estimator is checked via simulation. As a real data application, Leukemia data are analyzed by the proposed method and compared with other previous non-Bayesian method.