Question:hard
All of the following statements about the CT scan features of an adrenal adenoma are true, except:
All of the following statements about the CT scan features of an adrenal adenoma are true, except:
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Adenomas wash contrast out fast; slow washout suggests malignancy or pheochromocytoma.
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
- Calcification is rare
- Low attenuation
- Early enhancement with slow wash out of contrast
- Regular margins
Show Solution
The Correct Option is C
Solution and Explanation
The trick here is that the stem wants the one statement that does not fit a benign adrenal adenoma, so the goal is to spot the odd one out.
Picture a classic adenoma. It is small and benign, so its outline is smooth and regular. It rarely calcifies. Crucially, it is usually packed with intracellular lipid, which drops its density on plain CT to about 10 Hounsfield units or less. All three of these are genuine adenoma traits.
The discriminating test in practice is the contrast washout study. Adenomas take up contrast and then let it go quickly, producing brisk washout with high absolute and relative washout percentages. Lesions that hold onto contrast and wash out slowly are the worrying ones, such as metastases, adrenal carcinoma, and pheochromocytoma.
So the phrase 'slow wash out of contrast' contradicts adenoma physiology and is the false statement being asked for.
\[\boxed{\text{Early enhancement with slow wash out of contrast}}\]
Picture a classic adenoma. It is small and benign, so its outline is smooth and regular. It rarely calcifies. Crucially, it is usually packed with intracellular lipid, which drops its density on plain CT to about 10 Hounsfield units or less. All three of these are genuine adenoma traits.
The discriminating test in practice is the contrast washout study. Adenomas take up contrast and then let it go quickly, producing brisk washout with high absolute and relative washout percentages. Lesions that hold onto contrast and wash out slowly are the worrying ones, such as metastases, adrenal carcinoma, and pheochromocytoma.
So the phrase 'slow wash out of contrast' contradicts adenoma physiology and is the false statement being asked for.
\[\boxed{\text{Early enhancement with slow wash out of contrast}}\]
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