Carcinoid tumors of the appendix: are these tumors identifiable prospectively on preoperative CT?

The purpose of this study was to determine if carcinoid tumors of the appendix were identified prospectively on preoperative CT at our institution during the last decade. A surgical database search performed using the Current Procedural Terminology codes for appendectomy and colectomy yielded 2108 patients who underwent appendectomy or colectomy with removal of the appendix from January 1998 through September 2007. Pathology reports were reviewed to identify patients in whom an appendiceal carcinoid tumor was identified. Preoperative CT reports and images were reviewed. Twenty-three carcinoid tumors (1.1%; 15 women [65.2%], eight men [34.8%]; average age 54 years [range, 23 to 86 years]) were identified. Ten patients underwent preoperative CT. No tumors were identified prospectively on CT. Images were available for rereview for eight patients. Studies were acquired with 16- (n = 7) and four- (n = 1) slice CT scanners. Average reported tumor size was 6.1 mm (range, 1.5 to 15 mm; n = 18). A tip or distal location was reported for all tumors for which a location was given (n = 15). Carcinoid tumors occurred in 1.1 per cent of appendix specimens. These tumors were all less than or 1.5 cm in size. Likely as a result of their small size, none of these tumors was identified prospectively on preoperative CT.