Imaging the Pancreas

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma carries a poor prognosis. CT is a fine modality for imaging the pancreas and determining the nonresectability of a mass. Pancreatic imaging protocols tend to be biphasic with image acquisition performed in the pancreatic parenchymal and portal venous phases. The pancreatic parenchymal phase involves a scanning delay of 40-70 seconds while the portal venous phase is imaged at a delay of 60-70 seconds. Arterial phase imaging should be reserved for patients requiring CT angiography to evaluate for tumor resectability.


REFERENCES
McNulty NJ, Francis IR, Platt JF, et al. Multi-detector row helical CT of the pancreas: effect of contrast enhanced multiphasic imaging on enhancement of the pancreas, peripancreatic vasculature, and pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Radiology 2001;220:97-102.