# enlarged pancreatic tail



## LoriLee (Mar 3, 1999)

HelloDont want to go into boring details so I will bullet point the issue:*weight loss*upper gastric discomfort and sometimes pain*back discomfort*Ct showed enlarged pancreatic tail with no *definitive mass borders*MRI showed the same with slight decrease in dye uptake in tail*CEA and CA19-9 are within normal limits but CA-19 is in the higher end*amylase and lipase normal*IBS-C for 8 years (since hysterectomy at age 35) Has anyone dealt with this, or heard of this? I am currently scheduled for 2nd CT (now 30 days post 1st one) and possible EUS. I am looking for some input-thanks so much.


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## NancyCat (Jul 16, 1999)

Not exactly, but similar, sort of. I had a mass seen on CAT scan that was believed to be either on my left adrenal gland or the tail of my pancreas. The MRI showed that it was "probably" on my adrenal gland. Had an EUS that identified that it was indeed on my adrenal gland. My labs were all normal. I had the mass and my adrenal gland removed. The mass was benign. YOU DO NOT HAVE THE SAME THING SO PLEASE DO NOT PANIC.What I can tell you is what the EUS was like. I had it done under general anethesia at a major teaching hospital (where they have an expert who does just that). Its exactly the same as an upper endoscopy but it goes lower and is an ultrasound. I had no problems what so ever afterwards. There was no prep for it other than nothing to eat or drink the night before cause of the anethesia. It can probably be done under sedation, like with versid and fentynyl but I can't do versid so I had to have a general.I am not familiar with an enlarged pancreatic tail but I do know that if you had a mass there YOU DONT it is the best part of the pancreas to resect(operate on). When I wasnt sure if my mass was on my pancreas or not of course I freaked fearing pancreatic cancer. I remember DR's telling me how that if the mass was on that part of your pancreas it wouldnt be hard to operate on.Sounds like maybe your dr is looking to see if this enlargement changes by doing the 2nd cat scan. The EUS will be more definitive. I dont know what any of the blood test values mean. Maybe someone else here will know.Wish I could help you more and hope I didn't scare you. Please feel free to pm me at any time if you'd like. Hope this helps


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## NancyCat (Jul 16, 1999)

Not exactly, but similar, sort of. I had a mass seen on CAT scan that was believed to be either on my left adrenal gland or the tail of my pancreas. The MRI showed that it was "probably" on my adrenal gland. Had an EUS that identified that it was indeed on my adrenal gland. My labs were all normal. I had the mass and my adrenal gland removed. The mass was benign. YOU DO NOT HAVE THE SAME THING SO PLEASE DO NOT PANIC.What I can tell you is what the EUS was like. I had it done under general anethesia at a major teaching hospital (where they have an expert who does just that). Its exactly the same as an upper endoscopy but it goes lower and is an ultrasound. I had no problems what so ever afterwards. There was no prep for it other than nothing to eat or drink the night before cause of the anethesia. It can probably be done under sedation, like with versid and fentynyl but I can't do versid so I had to have a general.I am not familiar with an enlarged pancreatic tail but I do know that if you had a mass there YOU DONT it is the best part of the pancreas to resect(operate on). When I wasnt sure if my mass was on my pancreas or not of course I freaked fearing pancreatic cancer. I remember DR's telling me how that if the mass was on that part of your pancreas it wouldnt be hard to operate on.Sounds like maybe your dr is looking to see if this enlargement changes by doing the 2nd cat scan. The EUS will be more definitive. I dont know what any of the blood test values mean. Maybe someone else here will know.Wish I could help you more and hope I didn't scare you. Please feel free to pm me at any time if you'd like. Hope this helps


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## LaurieJ (Sep 3, 2002)

Hi LoriLee,I have pancreas problems so maybe I can help you out a little.The three symptoms that you mentioned are common for pancreas problems. You do not mention your age but if you are younger, it is rare to have a malignancy in the pancreas. The amylase and lipase lab tests are done to assess the the pancreas' state of health. The common rule of thumb is that if the these are elevated then there is some kind of inflammation in the pancreas. However, for many people with chronic problems of the pancreas, this doesn't hold true. Many physicians that do not specialize in pancreatic disease (including some GIs) are not aware of this. So, while elevated levels of these enzymes are diagnostic of pancreatic inflammation a normal level does not rule out problems. Again the CA assays do not necessarily rule out or diagnose a malignancy either although normal levels are a good sign.The best thing to do is to keep on top of this. Do not let your doctors become complacent with getting to the bottom of the mass. Depending on your age, you are probably going to need to have the mass (if that is what it turns out to be) biopsied. However be aware that pancreas' can have what are known as pseudocysts - this is just a collection of fluid. A sign of a diseased pancreas, but in and of itself, not malignant. Pancreatic cancer is deadly mainly because it is not detected until it is very advanced (similar to why ovarian cancer is so deadly). However if found early, it is treatable. So depending on what the CT shows, as well as the EUS, you may want to have peace of mind and undergo the biopsy.The EUS is basically a piece of cake to do.....and it will take a good look at the tissue of the pancreas. They may also suggest that you undergo an ERCP so that they can further figure out why the dye uptake was inhibited on the MRCP (MRI). The ERCP looks at the ducts of the pancreas and the biliary system. The weight loss, pain, and inflammation of the tail of the pancreas are all signs and symptoms that need to be investigated in great depth, in my opinion.Laurie


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## LaurieJ (Sep 3, 2002)

Hi LoriLee,I have pancreas problems so maybe I can help you out a little.The three symptoms that you mentioned are common for pancreas problems. You do not mention your age but if you are younger, it is rare to have a malignancy in the pancreas. The amylase and lipase lab tests are done to assess the the pancreas' state of health. The common rule of thumb is that if the these are elevated then there is some kind of inflammation in the pancreas. However, for many people with chronic problems of the pancreas, this doesn't hold true. Many physicians that do not specialize in pancreatic disease (including some GIs) are not aware of this. So, while elevated levels of these enzymes are diagnostic of pancreatic inflammation a normal level does not rule out problems. Again the CA assays do not necessarily rule out or diagnose a malignancy either although normal levels are a good sign.The best thing to do is to keep on top of this. Do not let your doctors become complacent with getting to the bottom of the mass. Depending on your age, you are probably going to need to have the mass (if that is what it turns out to be) biopsied. However be aware that pancreas' can have what are known as pseudocysts - this is just a collection of fluid. A sign of a diseased pancreas, but in and of itself, not malignant. Pancreatic cancer is deadly mainly because it is not detected until it is very advanced (similar to why ovarian cancer is so deadly). However if found early, it is treatable. So depending on what the CT shows, as well as the EUS, you may want to have peace of mind and undergo the biopsy.The EUS is basically a piece of cake to do.....and it will take a good look at the tissue of the pancreas. They may also suggest that you undergo an ERCP so that they can further figure out why the dye uptake was inhibited on the MRCP (MRI). The ERCP looks at the ducts of the pancreas and the biliary system. The weight loss, pain, and inflammation of the tail of the pancreas are all signs and symptoms that need to be investigated in great depth, in my opinion.Laurie


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## EdrHealth (May 10, 2018)

Hi all, I've (age 32) recently had an abdominal ultrasound and the report mentioned that I had an *enlarged pancreatic tail*. As I knew I didn't have acute or autoimmune pancreatitis (my amylase/bloods/Immunoglobulins levels suggested this) I wasn't left with many conditions that matched my symptoms of abdomen pain, mainly after eating and at night lying down, oily/pale stools, fatigue and weakness. I really didn't think I had chronic pancreatitis and there wasn't many more pancreas related issues to worry about except for pancreatic cancer...

Unfortunately, I had a wait a week before have a *MRCP* which occurred on a Friday of a bank holiday weekend so didn't get the report until the following Tuesday. Needless to say I was very stressed about what it could be and made my girlfriends and my own weekend miserable.

The report on Tuesday gave me the all clear for an ductal blockage/masses etc. and mentioned that I did indeed have a *bulky pancreas* but this wasn't unusual, especially for my age. I hadn't seen much information like this online/in literature over the weekend. I'm now back to investigating my abdominal pain by being referred to a gastroenterologist.

I think my point is, if you get an enlarged pancreatic tail comment in a report do please act on it quickly and get some more diagnostic tests but don't delve into the world of pancreatic cancer just yet as many of your symptoms may match up and cause you a huge amount of anxiety when there is very little chance of that being the cause of the report finding.

I hope someone reads this and prompts them to quickly investigate there symptoms but at the same time, doesn't go on an anxiety inducing research binge


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