Quantitative shear wave elastography for noninvasive assessment of solid pancreatic masses

PURPOSE To evaluate the diagnostic value of quantitative shear wave elastography (SWE) for the differential diagnosis of solid pancreatic tumors. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 66 solid pancreatic masses were enrolled in this study and all the lesions underwent quantitative SWE. The stiffness of the masses was expressed in shear wave velocity (SWV, m/s). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was plotted to assess the diagnostic performance of quantitative SWE. The optimal cutoff value for SWV in the differentiation of benign from malignant masses was determined. RESULTS The final diagnoses were 26 benign and 40 malignant masses. The SWVs were statistically higher for pancreatic malignant masses compared with those for benign masses (3.30±1.22 m/s versus 1.31±0.64 m/s; P