Pancreatic Cancer: Sensitivity and Specificity

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The sensitivity and specificity of findings for Pancreatic Cancer are listed below. See the left navigation bar to change the display.

Sensitive and Specific Findings

Finding	Sensitivity	Specificity	Comments, Study
Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided FNA	85%	100%	Endoscopic ultrasound FNA biopsy Sensitivity 85-90%. Specificity nearly 100%. Note: Lymph nodes may also be able to be biopsied. Study: Endoscopic ultrasound-guided real-time fine-needle aspiration biopsy of the pancreas in cancer patients with pancreatic lesions. Faigel DO; Ginsberg GG; Bentz JS; Gupta PK; Smith DB; Kochman ML J Clin Oncol 1997 Apr;15(4):1439-43. The clinical utility of endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration in the diagnosis and staging of pancreatic carcinoma. Chang KJ; Nguyen P; Erickson RA; Durbin TE; Katz KD Gastrointest Endosc 1997 May;45(5):387-93.
ERCP	90%	90%	ERCP has a sensitivity and specificity of 90 to 95 percent in detecting pancreatic cancer. It is most useful if the CT or US does not reveal a mass lesion or if chronic pancreatitis is in the differential diagnosis. Tissue samples and/or brush cytology can be collected at the time of ERCP, but the sensitivity for detection of malignancy is probably lower than that of endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)-guided FNA. Study: UpToDate: Clinical manifestations, diagnosis, and surgical staging of exocrine pancreatic cancer
Abdominal CT	85%	90%	CT scan has a better sensitivity than, and similar specificity to US (85 to 90 and 90 to 95 percent, respectively) for the detection of pancreatic cancer (From UpToDate) Study: A prospective study of the value of imaging, serum markers and their combination in the diagnosis of pancreatic carcinoma in symptomatic patients. Pasanen PA; Eskelinen M; Partanen K; Pikkarainen P; Penttila I; Alhava E Anticancer Res 1992 Nov-Dec;12(6B):2309-14.

Specific Findings

Finding	Sensitivity	Specificity	Comments, Study
Percutaneous FNA biopsy	80%	98%	Percutaneous FNA biopsy of a pancreatic mass can be performed using either US or CT guidance. Sensitivity from 80 to 90 and specificity from 98 to 100 percent. Study: Pancreatic cancer versus chronic pancreatitis: diagnosis with CA 19-9 assessment, US, CT, and CT-guided fine-needle biopsy. DelMaschio A; Vanzulli A; Sironi S; Castrucci M; Mellone R; Staudacher C; Carlucci M; Zerbi A; Parolini D; Faravelli A; et al. Radiology 1991 Jan;178(1):95-9.
Abdominal US	75%	90%	The reported sensitivity and specificity of US in diagnosing pancreatic cancer is 75 to 89 and 90 to 99 percent (From UpToDate) Study: Clinical presentation and ultrasonography in the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. Maringhini A; Ciambra M; Raimondo M; Baccelliere P; Grasso R; Dardanoni G; Lanzarone F; Cottone M; Sciarrino E; Pagliaro L Pancreas 1993 Mar;8(2):146-50. Abdominal US for diagnosis of pancreatic tumor: prospective cohort analysis. Karlson BM; Ekbom A; Lindgren PG; Kallskog V; Rastad J Radiology 1999 Oct;213(1):107-11.
CA 19-9	76.7%	87.1%	At a cutoff value of 37 U/ml, sensitivity and specificity were 76.7% and 87.1%, respectively. Study: Am J Gastroenterol. 1999;94(7):1941. PMID: 10406263

Findings With Unspecified Accuracy

CA 50

No accuracy specified.

Study: no study specified.