Colonoscopy News and Research

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Colonoscopy is examination of the inside of the colon using a colonoscope, inserted into the rectum. A colonoscope is a thin, tube-like instrument with a light and a lens for viewing. It may also have a tool to remove tissue to be checked under a microscope for signs of disease.

Penn researchers single out bacterial enzyme behind gut microbiome imbalance linked to Crohn’s disease

Penn Medicine researchers have singled out a bacterial enzyme behind an imbalance in the gut microbiome linked to Crohn's disease.

16 Nov 2017

Artificial intelligence to support cancer detection, study says

A novel artificial intelligence powered endoscopic system developed in Japan has been proved to automatically detect colorectal adenomas at the time of colonoscopy.

30 Oct 2017

Combination of serrated polyps and high-risk adenomas may increase odds for colorectal cancer

Most colorectal cancer develops from precursors known as polyps, the most common and well researched of which are conventional adenomas. Conventional adenomas often progress to colorectal cancer through an intermediate step called high-risk adenomas.

11 Oct 2017

Benefits of Biomarkers in Colorectal Cancer Treatment

Biomarkers fall into different categories: diagnostic biomarkers, are used to identify a disease; prognostic biomarkers, help clinicians to determine, for example, whether you're more likely to die or have problems with a disease; and there are some that can be used to inform treatment, to determine whether one therapy would be more successful than another.

2 Oct 2017

Experts call for greater focus on effective screening methods to help save lives from digestive cancers

Experts from United European Gastroenterology (UEG), presenting at the European Digestive Cancer Days Conference in Prague today, are calling on European governments to focus their efforts on developing early diagnosis techniques, in order to save thousands of lives from digestive cancers including a more targeted approach to ensure at risk patients don’t ‘slip through the early-detection net’.

28 Sep 2017

Follow-up letters, FIT tests can help improve colon cancer screening completion

Sending a letter and, in some cases, a simple mail-in kit tripled colon cancer screening completion among low-income adults, researchers at UT Southwestern's Simmons Cancer Center report this week in JAMA.

8 Sep 2017

Combined DNA and protein 'liquid biopsy' more accurate in identifying early-stage pancreatic cancer

Johns Hopkins scientists say they have developed a blood test that spots tumor-specific DNA and protein biomarkers for early-stage pancreatic cancer.

4 Sep 2017

Blood test using infrared spectroscopy could provide cheaper, quicker alternative for colitis screening

A fast, simple blood test for ulcerative colitis using infrared spectroscopy could provide a cheaper, less invasive alternative for screening compared to colonoscopy, which is now the predominant test, according to a study between the Department of Physics and Astronomy and the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University.

23 Aug 2017

Colon cancer rates rising among younger white adults — and falling among blacks

When Crawford Clay discovered blood on his shorts at the end a routine run in the spring of 2014, he did not know the stains were a symptom of a condition that also afflicted his family.

8 Aug 2017

Studies show how endoscopic procedures can improve outcomes and care

Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, features a study reporting that a simpler procedure for collecting biopsy specimens during various procedures can improve patient care, and a study showing how a relatively new procedure, POEM, has been adapted to help an additional set of patients with gastroparesis, a troubling stomach problem.

3 Aug 2017

Genetic test to predict IBD severity in children

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic relapsing inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract with abdominal pain and diarrhea being the most common symptoms. It can be challenging to diagnose as gastrointestinal complaints mimicking IBD are common.

26 Jul 2017

Patient navigator programs at barbershops could improve colorectal cancer screening among black men

Aging black men are at much greater risk of dying prematurely of colorectal cancer than any other group in the United States, and are less likely than their white counterparts to be diagnosed at an early stage of the disease.

25 Jul 2017

Simple financial incentive may improve rate of colonoscopy screenings

Offering $100 to patients eligible for a preventive colonoscopy screening more than doubled the rate of screening when compared to a simple emailed request, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

21 Jul 2017

Cancer death rates in rural America slower to decline compared to urban areas

According to the CDC, the cancer death rates nationwide have been on the decline. The reduction in these rates however is much slower in the rural areas than in other regions.

6 Jul 2017

Safe under the ACA, patients with preexisting conditions now fear bias

Cheasanee Huette, a 20-year-old college student in Northern California, is worried. Two years ago, knowing she was protected by the Affordable Care Act's guarantees of coverage for preexisting conditions, she decided to find out if she carried the same genetic mutation that eventually killed her mother.

29 Jun 2017

MSTF recommends colonoscopy and FIT as first tier screening tests for colorectal cancer

In its latest recommendations, the US Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer Screening confirms that people at average risk should be screened beginning at age 50, and recommends colonoscopy and fecal immunochemical testing as the "first tier" screening tests for this group.

21 Jun 2017

Expert suggests tips for families to help dad take care of his health

While many men struggle to be their own health advocate, Father's Day provides the perfect reminder for families to step up and encourage dad to take care of himself.

16 Jun 2017

Study finds low risk for complications after colonoscopy screening

During colonoscopy screening for bowel cancer and in the four weeks after the procedure, the risk for complications to develop is low.

14 Jun 2017

UAB researchers demonstrate persistence of donor microbes in recipients after fecal transplant

University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers have made the first direct demonstration that fecal donor microbes remained in recipients for months or years after a transplant to treat the diarrhea and colitis caused by recurrent Clostridium difficile infections -- a serious and stubborn cause of diarrhea after an antibiotic treatment for some other illness.