WASHINGTON - SO-CALLED virtual colonoscopies - done using souped-up x-rays - detect tumours and precancerous lesions almost as well as standard colonoscopies using a camera threaded through the colon, Italian researchers reported on Tuesday.
The virtual procedure, done using computed tomography scans, might offer an alternative for people who are embarrassed or afraid to have a standard colonoscopy and encourage them to be examined, Dr Daniele Regge of the Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment in Turin, Italy, and colleagues said.
'APPEALING SOLUTION'
DR REGGE'S team tested more than 1,000 people, giving each both a real and virtual colonoscopy on the same day.
The x-rays found 151 of the 177 patients who had advanced neoplasia - the lesions most likely to become tumours if not removed.
Their study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, adds to a growing body of evidence showing the CT procedures are safe and almost as good as standard colonoscopies.
Colon cancer is the second-biggest cancer killer in most countries, after lung cancer.
It is easily detected at earlier and more treatable stages using colonoscopy - a tiny camera threaded up through the rectum. The device has a little pair of clippers on the end to remove suspicious-looking growths called polyps so they can be tested to see if they might become cancerous.
US health experts recommend regular colonoscopies for people starting at age 50 and the practice is credited with helping to lower the number of deaths from colon cancer from around 52,000 in 2007 to just under 50,000 people this year in the United States.
But only about half of those who should get them do, in part because the procedure is embarrassing, uncomfortable and can, in rare cases, cause injury. -- REUTERS
