Early pancreatic cancer is possible to be detected by ordinary CT, but the sensitivity of ordinary CT for early pancreatic cancer is limited, and there is also a certain degree of probability of missed diagnosis.
Pancreatic cancer is a malignant tumor of the digestive tract with insidious onset, rapid progression, and extremely poor therapeutic effect and prognosis. Most of the patients are already in the middle or late stage when they are diagnosed, and metastasis may have already occurred. Diagnosis of pancreatic cancer requires a combination of symptoms, serum tumor markers, imaging and pathology. Among them, CT is one of the most important tests.
Early pancreatic cancer usually refers to T1-T2N0M0 stage, i.e., stage I pancreatic cancer, when the tumor is confined to the pancreas, and the tumor size is <4 cm (T1: maximum diameter of the tumor is ≤2.0 cm; T2: 2.0 cm< maximum diameter of the tumor is ≤4.0 cm).
Normal CT is usually 16-row unenhanced CT, and the resolution at this time is mostly 2 cm, so the resolution is low; in addition, early pancreatic cancer foci are small, the occupying effect is not obvious, and there are intestinal gases, gastric wall, blood vessels and other tissues around the pancreas to increase the difficulty of identification, which may lead to misdiagnosis.
CT pancreatic dynamic thin-layer enhancement scanning and three-dimensional reconstruction is the preferred imaging examination, which can provide a very important imaging basis for the qualitative and localization diagnosis of pancreatic tumors, especially in the preoperative assessment of the resectability of pancreatic tumors is of great significance.
In addition, CT examination is also the main examination tool for follow-up review after pancreatic cancer treatment, and besides CT enhancement, magnetic resonance enhancement is also of great significance. A combination of symptoms, serologic tests, etc. is also needed.
If pancreatic cancer is suspected or diagnosed, it is recommended to go to a regular hospital for comprehensive evaluation of the condition and follow the doctor's instructions to cooperate with the treatment, so as to avoid delaying the condition.