Objective：To discuss the feasibility of distinguishing benign from malignant intraductal papillary mucinous tumors (IPMT) of the pancreas preoperatively based on the clinical and radiological characteristics. Methods: The clinical data of 40 patients with IPMT treated between July 1996 and March 2007 were analyzed. The diagnoses of all patients were confirmed pathologically after surgical resections. Among the 40 patients, there were 17 benign cases and 23 malignant ones. Results: Malignant IPMT patients had a higher frequency of upper abdominal pain and jaundice than benign patients (P<0.05). The sex difference in incidence of IPMT, time of onset, and loss of body mass were not significantly different between the 2 groups. Radiological results demonstrated that the size of tumor and mural nodules in the lesions were larger in the malignant cases than in the benign cases (P<0.05); besides, the malignant cases also had a more dilated main pancreatic duct (MPD)(P<0.05).Mural nodules and thick irregular septum in the cystic lesions were more frequently seen in malignant cases (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the site preference between the 2 groups. Conclusion: Benign and malignant IPMT have significant differences in their clinical and radiological characteristics, which provides an important evidence for differentiating the biological types of IPMT and helps surgeons on their decision of surgical planning.