MR Cholangiopancreatography (MRCP)

In-situ mucin-hypersecreting intraductal adenocarcinoma (low malignant potential)

In this sub-second transverse T2-weighted image, there is a complex cystic mass in the head of the pancreas (arrow).
In this sub-second coronal T2-weighted image, the the cystic mass is shown to communicate with the pancreatic duct (arrow), which is mildly dilated.
Sub-second coronal-oblique MRCP image shows the normal biliary system, duodenum, gallbladder, and the cystic mass communicating with the pancreatic duct. The duct in the pancreatic tail (small arrows) is not dilated.

More than any other method of imaging, MRI allows non-invasive imaging of biliary and pancreatic ductal anatomy, identification of calculi, and distinction between normal and abnormal pancreatic tissue.
References

1. Fulcher AS, Turner MA. Magnetic resonance pancreatography: experience in 400 patients. Radiographics 1998.

2. Holzknecht N, Gauger J, Sackmann M, Thoeni RF, et al. Breath-hold MR cholangiography with snapshot techniques: prospective comparison with endoscopic retrograde cholangiography. Radiology 1998;206:657-664.

3. Chan Y, Chan ACW, Lam WWM, Lee DWH, et al. Choledocholithiasis: Comparison of MR cholangiography nd endoscopic retrograde cholangiography. Radiology 1996;200:85-89.

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