Imaging of malignancy-suspected pancreatic involvement of extrapulmonary tuberculosis

Extrapulmonary tuberculosis has a poor reputation because of its manifestations. Diagnostic delays or misdiagnosis negatively impact treatment. It has a low incidence and can easily mimic other noninfectious abdominal diseases, which are therefore necessary in the differential diagnosis. We report a 45-year old male presenting with obstructive jaundice, night fever, and abdominal pain and we describe the repeated interesting imaging findings. Imaging techniques revealed an irregularly bordered retroperitoneal mass. Extrapulmonary tuberculosis involvement was diagnosed after laparotomy biopsies. In the case of retroperitoneal mass on imaging techniques, we believe that intraabdominal tuberculosis should be included in the differential diagnosis, especially in endemic areas, in order to avoid unnecessary serious surgical procedures. In this case, we studied serial phase contrast dynamic magnetic resonance imaging of the pancreatic head mass; the complications of hepatic abscess and cholangitis that developed after surgery have never been reported concomitant with tuberculosis disease.