Colonoscopy Best for Detecting Cancer

A recent multicenter study compared the relative sensitivity of the two widely utilized techniques for detecting colon cancer, the air-contrast barium enema (ACBE) and colonoscopy, with a newer noninvasive method called computed tomography colonography (CTC). Colonoscopy was proven by far to be the most effective for detecting both smaller and larger colon polyps.

Under the leadership of researchers at Duke University Medical Center (Durham, NC, USA), the study evaluated all three techniques on 614 patients at risk for colon cancer. "This research reaffirms that colonoscopy remains the gold standard for screening patients for colon cancer. In the study, colonoscopy detected virtually all (98%) of larger polyps and (99%) of smaller lesions. Compared to the other two screening methods, colonoscopy was 39% more accurate than CTC and 51% more accurate than ACBE in detecting larger lesions (+10 mm), and 51% mores accurate than CTC and 64% more accurate than ACBE in detecting smaller lesions (6-9 mm),” said David J. Bjorkman, M.D., dean of the University of Utah School of Medicine (Salt Lake City, UT, USA).

David Lieberman, M.D., from the Oregon Health Science University (Portland, OR, USA), remarked, "Colonoscopy is still the most accurate test for detection and removal of cancer and precancerous growths in the colon. Like any medical test, colonoscopy is not perfect, and some polyps may be present, but not detected. However, most precancerous polyps and virtually all cancers will be detected, and can usually be removed during the colonoscopy examination.”

The study was published in the January 1, 2005, issue of the journal The Lancet.





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