Pancreatic mass due to chronic pancreatitis: correlation of CT and MR imaging features with pathologic findings.

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify helical CT and MR imaging features of pancreatic masses (focal enlargement) due to chronic pancreatitis and their correlation with pathologic findings. When histologic fibrosis is uniformly present through the pancreas in patients with chronic pancreatitis, there is no demarcation of masses due to chronic pancreatitis. When there is a greater degree of histologic fibrosis in the masslike part of the pancreas, the mass is often demarcated from the remaining pancreas, and the enhancement pattern on two-phase helical CT and dynamic gadolinium-enhanced MR imaging mimics that of pancreatic adenocarcinoma.