New Bowel Cancer Screening Test Hailed as a "Breakthrough"

[Guest fountainhall]

The UK’s Sky News is reporting that a new “breakthrough” test for bowel cancer has been given the go-ahead by the UK National Screening Committee. Known as flexible sigmoidoscopy, the test allows doctors to see the wall of the bowel so they can then remove any small growths that have the potential to develop into cancer.

 

Cancer Research UK, which funded the trials, hailed the news as a "breakthrough". The charity's head of policy, Hazel Nunn said: "The results were quite outstanding. "It's not often we would use the word breakthrough, but that's what this is. The trials found that a once-only scope can reduce the incidence of bowel cancer by a third and cut the number of deaths by nearly a half."

 

Bowel cancer is the third most prevalent cancer in the UK and the second biggest killer. In 2008 a total of 39,991 people were diagnosed with it and 16,259 died.

 

Dafydd Jones was diagnosed with the disease when he was 26 and now, two years later, is completely free of it.

 

He campaigns to raise awareness and says the new test will save thousands of lives. "I never realised people so young could get it. And it gets misdiagnosed a lot too, sometimes as Crohn's disease or irritable bowel syndrome. So anything that speeds up detection is massively welcome because it will save lives."

 

Everybody in England aged 55-64 will be invited for the new test.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20110407/tuk-bowel-cancer-breakthrough-may-save-t-45dbed5.html

[Bob]

Had one of these (sigmoidoscopy) by my general practictioner more than a decade ago...and thought it was fairly standard procedures for people over 40-50. Better yet is the colonoscopy which I underwent 5 or so years ago (and will likely repeat it in a few years when I'm 65 or 66). Nothing questionable showed up in the first procedure so I'm not too worried about waiting 5-10 years for the second. The absolute key for bowel cancer is early detection (detected early, it's almost always permanently curable).

 

For about 10 years now, I know some doctors (started first being in wide use in Florida as I understand it) were using a "virtual" colonoscopy....which is some kind of MRI/Catscan/Xray deal checking out the large and small intestines. I haven't read much about it for a few years and I'm wondering if there have been any studies done to determine if this virtual procedure has a somewhat equal ability to spot questionable growths/nodes; if so, it'd be a lot easier and cheaper than either the sigmoid deal or the full colonoscopy.

[kokopelli]

Not sure why anyone would waste their time having a sigmoidoscopy when the colonoscopy is much more effective?

[Guest fountainhall]

If the sigmoidoscopy has been around in the US for more then ten years, I'm wondering why the UK medical service is so far behind! Is a sigmoidoscopy the same as a flexible sigmoidoscopy?

 

Not sure why anyone would waste their time having a sigmoidoscopy when the colonoscopy is much more effective?

Is this because the colonoscopy covers both the bowel and the colon? I know I should know as I've had a couple of the latter (nothing found either time, thankfully), but never really considered the extent of the 'exploration'!

 

Virtual colonoscopy? Is this the same as the pill that was developed a couple of years or so ago that is in reality a miniature camera and which takes the photos as it goes through your gut? That obviously avoids the need for the invasive camera work, but you still need to drink all that liquid stuff to flush out the colon beforehand. That's the part I don't like!

[Rogie]

Thanks for posting about this Fountainhall. Here is another snippet taken from that page on Yahoo:

 

Everybody in England aged 55-64 will be invited for the new test.

 

Professor Julietta Patnick, director of the NHS Cancer Screening Programmes, said the new test would be "an important addition to our existing bowel cancer screening programme".

 

Currently people aged 60 to 69 are invited to send off stool samples as part of the screening programme, to which the new test will now be added.

 

Soon after my 60th birthday last year I received the bowel cancer screening programme in the post. I don't know how reliable the test is but it is certainly very easy to participate. Just three samples needed on 3 different days, then you post it back. So it would seem to be an efficient, high-turnover, cheap, reasonably reliable (I assume) test. I agree the flexible sigmoidoscopy is likely to be "an important addition" but I wonder how many people are going to skip it because of the 'inconvenience' coupled to it being a part of the body makes some people feel queasy. I'll definitely be participating as bowel cancer is something I definitely do not wish to contract. I have reservations regarding just how quickly this additional test will become established as it will represent a very big committment, far in excess of the existing very simple, low-cost screening programme.

[kokopelli]

If the sigmoidoscopy has been around in the US for more then ten years, I'm wondering why the UK medical service is so far behind! Is a sigmoidoscopy the same as a flexible sigmoidoscopy?

 

 

Is this because the colonoscopy covers both the bowel and the colon? I know I should know as I've had a couple of the latter (nothing found either time, thankfully), but never really considered the extent of the 'exploration'!

 

Virtual colonoscopy? Is this the same as the pill that was developed a couple of years or so ago that is in reality a miniature camera and which takes the photos as it goes through your gut? That obviously avoids the need for the invasive camera work, but you still need to drink all that liquid stuff to flush out the colon beforehand. That's the part I don't like!

 

These type of tests have been around for many years so not sure why the big news now?

The flexible sigmoidoscopy replaces the rigid tube that previously was used to examine the lower colon. The colonoscopy uses a longer, flexible tube that examines most of the colon plus allows the removal of any suspected lesions such as polyps. Virtual colonoscopy is a form of external imaging CT or MRI. Less invasive but not as effective and does not allow for removal of polyps, etc.

 

The procedure is short and easy and not painful,etc. You are put asleep and wake up and have no real after effects other than perhaps loose bowels next time you eat! The preparation is another matter, having to drink 4 liters of liquid the night before the procedure to cleanse your colon. Most unpleasant.

[Bob]

If the sigmoidoscopy has been around in the US for more then ten years, I'm wondering why the UK medical service is so far behind! Is a sigmoidoscopy the same as a flexible sigmoidoscopy?

 

Yes, it's a small (maybe half-inch wide?) black flexible tube that a doctor manipulates around the "corners." He looks into an eyepiece (I presume there's a light at the end) and he also has the ability to stick something else up there to take a sample of anything that looks suspicious. The limitation is that it's somewhat short and only extends through the lower 1/3rd of your colon (the "sigmoid" area of the colon). I was rather surprised by the "news" of this as it's somewhat old hat in the US. As noted, my long-time GP (general practitioner) did this more than 10 years ago (and I can assure you he is not up on the latest and greatest).

 

I had the full colonoscopy (which checks out the entire colon) 4 or 5 years ago. Easy procedure (they injected something into my IV and I was out like a light and had no clue until I realized I was back putting my normal clothes on) and, as noted, it's the preparation the evening before that's the real pain in the ass......

[Guest]

If the sigmoidoscopy has been around in the US for more then ten years, I'm wondering why the UK medical service is so far behind!

 

Healthcare in the UK is a state run monopoly. As has been proven in places like the Soviet Union, such structures stifle innovation & lead to inefficient services & a very poor regard for the customer. Indeed, in many GPs surgeries, they don't even appear to regard patients as customers, rather they are merely pawns to be pushed around by the state apparatus.

By definition, there is no effective competition.

 

The net result is poor customer service, unreasonable queues and comparatively poor survival rates for cancers and the like.

 

Local GPs often adopt highly unscientific methods of diagnosis, without conducting all the tests that are normal in other countries. Therefore they frequently fail to diagnose correctly or early enough.

 

Tragically, despite all this, the NHS still seems to be a sacred cow.

I don't wish to deny all the socialists access to this institution, however they could at least allow the rest of us to put our cut of the health budget into regulated private healthcare insurance.

 

As it is, being only 10 years behind the US is a breakthrough.