Validation of Virtual Colonoscopy Continues
At the recent meeting of the American College of Radiology Imaging Network, data from an ongoing NIH-funded trial to evaluate virtual colonoscopy was presented.
The data presented suggests that screening with computerized tomographic colonography (CTC) may be the new favored option for colon cancer screening. The study was completed at 15 different locations across the U.S. Researchers hope that findings from that trial will definitively prove that CTC is the best method for colorectal cancer screening.
Results from other completed trials to investigate the newer technique show it is on par with traditional colonoscopy, as reported by the Associated Press. But, acceptance of the modality may be hampered by early studies which provided mixed results about the approach efficacy.
In addition to the awaited results from the NIH project, the current issue of the New England Journal of Medicine contains results from a study completed at the University of Wisconsin. That study suggests that it is time for CTC to become the gold standard for colorectal cancer screening based on an assessment of over 6,280 patients.
One advantage of virtual colonography is that it is less expensive than the current gold standard for colorectal cancer screening, standard colonoscopy. Costs from the Wisconsin study marked CTC at $1,186 and $3,300 for a standard colonoscopy, with additional charges for polyp removal.
Colonoscopy can be reserved only for those patients who have suspicious findings on CTC, rather than as a screening test for this condition. An additional benefit of this approach is that the potential risks of CTC are limited and mild, at worst. Colonoscopy, alternatively, is associated with a potential risk of bowel puncture. In addition, such imaging is most often completed with mild anaesthesia, which carries risks in its own right.
One drawback of virtual colonoscopy is that patients who do have polyps will require the standard procedure in order to remove such lesions. Oftentimes, that procedure can be completed on the same day. This may be the appropriate balance in light if the risk profiles and costs of the individual tests.
October 4, 2007 Related topics: Imaging, Partnerships & Consortia, Diagnostic, Radiology, Gastroenterology