Radiologists are overlooking signs of pancreatic cancer on imaging more and more, new study indicates
Signs of pancreatic cancer on imaging are frequently overlooked for many patients who undergo CT and/or MRI.
That’s according to new data presented Oct. 11 at United European Gastroenterology Week 2022 in Vienna. The research revealed that 7.7% of patients screened for pancreatic cancer had their tumors missed on initial imaging exams but were diagnosed with cancer between three and 18 months later.
Nosheen Umar, the lead author of the study, from the University of Birmingham in the UK, commented on the study's results and how such missed findings put patients at increased risk:
“There is often only a very short period for curative surgery in pancreatic cancer meaning it is vital that patients are diagnosed with the disease as early as possible to give them the best chance of survival. The study found that evidence of pancreatic cancer was initially missed in over a third of patients with post imaging pancreatic cancers, which is a huge window of lost opportunity.”
Post-imaging pancreatic cancer (PIPC) refers to cancer that is missed on initial imaging but detected soon thereafter. In this study, experts shared that 36% of PIPC could have been avoided.
To identify the potential precursors to such missed findings, radiologists conducted an independent review of CT and MR images to develop an algorithm that could categorize the missed findings. The experts found that in 48% of PIPC patients, a specialist hepatobiliary radiologist identified signs of cancer that had been overlooked on initial imaging. In 28% of these cases, signs like dilated bile and/or pancreatic ducts were not recognized or investigated further.
In a news release, Umar indicated that the study’s findings could help standardize future work intended to advance the detection of early pancreatic cancer by helping bring more attention to signs commonly associated with the disease that are often overlooked.
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In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.