A Prospective Study of Hepatic Imaging in the Detection of Metastatic Disease

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
This prospective study of 80 patients compared the results of liver scintiscan, ultrasound and CT [computed tomography] scan to the objective findings recorded at laparotomy. Analysis of these data revealed no significant differences in sensitivity, specificity or accuracy among these 3 imaging procedures, although a trend toward increased accuracy of the CT scan was noted. In a composite analysis, the accuracy was not improved by combining 2 or all 3 of these examinations. A lesion by lesion analysis revealed the inability of any of the 3 currently used techniques to accurately detect lesions < 3 cm in diameter.