RESEARCH - Virtual colonoscopy accurate and less invasive

[Guest guest]

Virtual colonoscopy accurate and 'less invasive'

By Harper

THE WASHINGTON TIMES

October 19, 2006

Here's welcome news for anyone alarmed by a standard " optical " colonoscopy,

the oft-dreaded and unpopular exam for colon cancer that yields an accurate

diagnosis, right along with patient discomfort and embarrassment.

Three-dimensional computed tomography colonography -- or virtual

colonoscopy -- is getting high marks from the Radiological Society of North

America, which is lauding both the procedure's accuracy and appeal. Simply

put, there is no 52-inch " scope " involved, and no sedation.

Colonoscopy dread is common: Fewer than 40 percent of all Americans 50

or older have been screened, according to the Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention. The virtual method, which combines CT scan and computerized

visual enhancement, could be enough to " entice " those who might be at risk,

the society said.

" Our goal is not to take patients away from existing strategies like

optical colonoscopy, but rather to attract those who are currently not being

screened at all, " said Dr. J. Pickhardt, associate professor of

radiology at the University of Wisconsin Medical School in Madison.

Dr. Pickhardt compared the two methods in a study of more than 1,110

people whose average age was 58.

" The advantages of virtual colonoscopy over optical colonoscopy at our

institution are that it is safer, faster, less costly, more convenient,

involves an easier bowel prep, and yet is just as effective for detecting

important polyps and cancers, " he said.

Dr. Pickhardt's research found that only 6 percent of the patients who

underwent a virtual colonoscopy required a subsequent conventional

colonoscopy. The two methods were " in agreement " in 65 of those 71 patients.

The virtual method produces up to 1,000 precise, three-dimensional

images of the colon's interior, minus the lengthy scope. There is

" essentially no risk of bleeding or of perforating the colon, " Dr. Pickhardt

said. There also is no need for intravenous sedation, and the " attractive

screening tool " costs less than conventional colonoscopy does, he said.

" Providing a less invasive, yet equally effective screening option like

virtual colonoscopy has drawn many adults off the sidelines, " Dr. Pickhardt

said.

The researchers also coordinated insurance coverage for the screenings,

demonstrating " enormous potential for increasing compliance for colorectal

cancer prevention, " Dr. Pickhardt said.

More than 150 insurance companies nationwide cover the cost of the

procedure, but the companies are " highly selective, " depending on a person's

coverage limits, according to Cancer Consultants, an Idaho-based consumer

research group. People who finance the procedure out of pocket can expect to

pay $600 to $1,600, the group said.

Colorectal cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer deaths in

the United States, according to the American Cancer Society. It estimates

that 107,000 new cases will be diagnosed this year, resulting in 55,000

deaths.

Dr. Pickhardt's study was released yesterday by the cancer society and

published in the medical journal Radiology. Virtual colonoscopy also

received positive reviews in similar research conducted in the past two

years at the National Institutes of Health, the National Naval Medical

Center and Walter Army Medical Center.

In addition, the procedure has yielded surprise benefits. It has picked

up " clinically important extracolonic findings, " according to a study last

year at the San Francisco VA Medical Center. Virtual colonoscopy revealed

kidney cancers, abdominal aneurysms and other serious conditions in 45 out

of 500 patients who underwent the procedure.

" That's a fairly large percentage, " said Dr. Judy Yee, the center's

chief of radiology and lead investigator.

Meanwhile, the American College of Gastroenterology has not yet given

its blanket approval of virtual colonoscopy for routine screening. But the

land-based group yesterday pronounced capsule colonoscopy -- in which

the patient swallows a jelly bean-sized video camera that records thousands

of images -- a " promising new tool for colon cancer screening. " The group

will release complete research findings on Monday.

http://insider.washingtontimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20061019-122136-3\

377r

Not an MD

I'll tell you where to go!

Mayo Clinic in Rochester

http://www.mayoclinic.org/rochester

s Hopkins Medicine

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org

[Guest guest]

Okay, SIGN ME UP!!! I have resisted the Colonoscopy for years. Is this

Virtual Test available everywhere?

Thanks for the info!

/NY