This 78 y/o male patient with asthma and insulin dependent diabetes complained of decreased appetite and weight loss. He was referred for abdominal CT. The selected images shown above demonstrate a mass in the pancreas containing a coarse calcification. A CT guided percutaneous core biopsy demonstrated an islet cell tumor of the pancreas.
  1. Buetow PC, Parrino TV, Buck JL, Pantongrag-Brown L, Ros PR, Dachman AH, Cruess DF. Islet cell tumors of the pancreas: pathologic-imaging correlation among size, necrosis and cysts, calcification, malignant behavior, and functional status. AJR Am J Roentgenol 1995 Nov;165(5):1175-9 UI:96021950
  2. Eelkema EA, Stephens DH, Ward EM, Sheedy PF 2d. CT features of nonfunctioning islet cell carcinoma. AJR Am J Roentgenol 1984 Nov;143(5):943-8 UI:85019819
  3. Madura JA, Cummings OW, Wiebke EA, Broadie TA, Goulet RL Jr, Howard TJ. Nonfunctioning islet cell tumors of the pancreas: a difficult diagnosis but one worth the effort. Am Surg 1997 Jul;63(7):573-7; discussion 577-8 UI:97346109
  4. Phan GQ, Yeo CJ, Hruban RH, Lillemoe KD, Pitt HA, Cameron JL. Surgical experience with pancreatic and peripancreatic neuroendocrine tumors: review of 125 patients. J Gastrointest Surg 1998 Sep-Oct;2(5):472-82 UI:99059995
  5. Furukawa H, Mukai K, Kosuge T, Kanai Y, Shimada K, Yamamoto J, Mizuguchi Y, Ushio K. Nonfunctioning islet cell tumors of the pancreas: clinical, imaging and pathological aspects in 16 patients. Jpn J Clin Oncol 1998 Apr;28(4):255-61 UI:98321230
  6. Stephens DH. CT of pancreatic neoplasms. Part II: The unusual tumors. Curr Probl Diagn Radiol 1997 Mar-Apr;26(2):81-106 UI:97251334
  7. Van Hoe L, Gryspeerdt S, Marchal G, Baert AL, Mertens L. Helical CT for the preoperative localization of islet cell tumors of the pancreas: value of arterial and parenchymal phase images. AJR Am J Roentgenol 1995 Dec;165(6):1437-9 UI:96072693
  8. Thoeni RF, Blankenberg F. Pancreatic imaging. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Radiol Clin North Am 1993 Sep;31(5):1085-113 UI:93369318
  9. Semelka RC, Cumming MJ, Shoenut JP, Magro CM, Yaffe CS, Kroeker MA, Greenberg HM. Islet cell tumors: comparison of dynamic contrast-enhanced CT and MR imaging with dynamic gadolinium enhancement and fat suppression. Radiology 1993 Mar;186(3):799-802 UI:93157594
  10. Gunther RW, Klose KJ, Ruckert K, Kuhn FP, Beyer J, Klotter HJ, Cordes U. Islet-cell tumors: detection of small lesions with computed tomography and ultrasound. Radiology 1983 Aug;148(2):485-8 UI:83248139
  11. Cohen DJ, Fagelman D. Pancreas islet cell carcinoma with complete fatty replacement: CT characteristics. J Comput Assist Tomogr 1986 Nov-Dec;10(6):1050-1 UI:87058287

Use the Back or Backward button on your browser to return