Small intestine cancer CT

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Qurrat-ul-ain Abid, M.D.[2]

Overview

Abdominal CT scan may be diagnostic of small intestine cancer. Findings on CT scan suggestive of small intestine cancer include intrinsic mass with a short segment of bowel wall thickening.

CT Scan

CT is the study of choice for staging the disease by identifying primary tumor, assessing local, nodal, and distant spread.
CT may help in differentiating between the small intestinal cancers. Different cancers have different appearance on CT:^[1]
CT scan may show intrinsic mass with a short segment of bowel wall thickening.
Invasion of retro peritoneal fat planes, pancreatic and biliary duct, vascular encasement, lymph nodal and distant metastases is common in later stages.
In Peutz-Jeghers Syndrome, non-neoplastic lesions may resemble small intestinal neoplasm on CT.

Tumors	Findings on CT
Adenocarcinmoa	Ulcerative lesions, nodular lesions and annular lesions
Carcinoid tumors	Poorly defined homogenous mass displacing intestinal loops Calcification and desmoplastic reaction is a very specific finding of carcinoid tumors on CT
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma	Bulky mass on CT Lymphoma is associated with significant dilation of the lumen of intestine
Gastrointestinal stromal tumors(GISTs)	Intraluminal, subserosal or submucosal homogeneous masses with sharply defined borders Calcifications
Lipoma	Intraluminal homogeneous mass, well-circumscribed and with some fat attenuation
Malignant metastasized tumors	Intraperitoneal seedings extending locally Metastasized tumors give appearance of multiple small nodular masses in intestinal serosa, mesentery, and omentum

References

↑ Buckley, J A; Fishman, E K (1998). “CT evaluation of small bowel neoplasms: spectrum of disease”. RadioGraphics. 18 (2): 379–392. doi:10.1148/radiographics.18.2.9536485. ISSN 0271-5333.

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[BuckleyFishman1998-1] Buckley, J A; Fishman, E K (1998). “CT evaluation of small bowel neoplasms: spectrum of disease”. RadioGraphics. 18 (2): 379–392. doi:10.1148/radiographics.18.2.9536485. ISSN 0271-5333.

[1]

Small intestine cancer CT

Overview

CT Scan

References

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