ROLE OF MDCT IN THE EVALUATION OF FOCAL PANCREATIC MASS LESIONS

Background: Pancreatic lesions, both benign and malignant, present diagnostic challenges due to overlapping imaging features. Multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) is now the preferred modality for comprehensive assessment, characterisation and surgical planning of various lesions and future mangement options (Sahani et al., 2004). The study evaluates the diagnostic rol Aims & Objectives: e of MDCT in the assessment of focal pancreatic mass lesions. The objectives are to analyze the imaging characteristics of these lesions, their differential diagnosis, complications and extent of involvement of the surrounding structures, determine MDCT's sensitivity and specificity, and assess its concordance with histopathological, surgical, and clinical reference standards. This prospective observational Materials And Methods: study included 50 patients with clinically suspected or incidentally detected pancreatic lesions who underwent contrast-enhanced MDCT. Imaging features were analyzed and correlated with histopathological/surgical findings or clinical/radiological follow-up. Results: Out of 50 lesions evaluated, 31 were malignant and 19 benign. MDCT showed high diagnostic concordance with the composite reference standard, with a sensitivity of 93.55% and specificity of 63.16%. MDCT provides reliable morphological and functional assessment of pancreatic Conclusion: lesions. It is a highly sensitive modality for differentiating benign from malignant lesions and plays a crucial role in staging, planning resection, and guiding clinical management.