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Improved characterisation of solitary solid pancreatic tumours using contrast enhanced transabdominal ultrasound

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An Erratum to this article was published on 01 December 2007

Abstract

Background

Contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is a new imaging method for detection and characterisation of liver tumours. The role of CEUS in pancreatic disease is less obvious. We prospectively evaluated CEUS for characterization of undetermined solid pancreatic lesions (gold standard histology).

Patients and methods

A total of 112 solitary undetermined pancreatic masses (70 ductal adenocarcinoma and 42 neoplastic nodules of other origin) were prospectively examined in patients without metastatic disease using transabdominal ultrasound. Tumour enhancing features were analyzed in comparison to the surrounding pancreatic parenchyma in patients with adequate visualisation.

Results

The sign of iso-hypervascularity as a sign of non-ductal adenocarcinoma showed a sensitivity of 100%, specifity of 90% and accuracy of 93.8%. The sign of hypovascularity as a sign of ductal adenocarcinoma showed a sensitivity of 90%, specifity of 100% and an accuracy of 93.8%.

Conclusion

CEUS allows differential diagnosis of ductal adenocarcinoma and non-ductal adenocarcinoma (mainly neuroendocrine tumours and (microcystic) serous pancreatic adenoma) in the most of cases.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical and Imaging Department, Caritas-Krankenhaus, Innere Medizin 2, Caritaskrankenhaus Bad Mergentheim, Uhlandstr. 7, 97980, Bad Mergentheim, Germany

    C. F. Dietrich & A. Ignee

  2. Medical Department I, University Hospital Frankfurt, Theodor Stern Kai 7, 60590, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    B. Braden

  3. Medical Department, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headley Way, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK

    B. Braden

  4. Department of Pathology, Caritas-Krankenhaus, Uhlandstr. 7, 97980, Bad Mergentheim, Germany

    M. Ott

  5. Department of Internal Medicine II, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Erlanger Allee 101, 07740, Jena, Germany

    M. Hocke

Authors
  1. C. F. Dietrich
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  2. B. Braden
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  3. M. Hocke
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  4. M. Ott
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  5. A. Ignee
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to C. F. Dietrich.

Additional information

An erratum to this article can be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00432-007-0335-5

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Dietrich, C.F., Braden, B., Hocke, M. et al. Improved characterisation of solitary solid pancreatic tumours using contrast enhanced transabdominal ultrasound. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 134, 635–643 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00432-007-0326-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00432-007-0326-6

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