Oct 6, 2009 4:00 pm US/Eastern
Health: Finding Colon Cancer
PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ―
Chris Zalewski is a nurse at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. Dealing with sick people, and knowing colon cancer runs in her family, she's doing everything she can do to prevent it.
"It's very scary. I mean cancer itself is scary," said Chris.
So she is getting a new kind of colonoscopy at Jefferson. It's called the Third Eye. The standard colonoscopy is outfitted with a new kind of camera to help detect and remove pre-cancerous polyps.
"There are blind spots in the colon. This has been shown to pick up polyps that are hidden on the backside of the folds. This is like having a rear-view mirror," said Dr. Infantolino, a gastroenterologist at Jefferson.
He says studies show up to 24 percent of polyps are missed, and this new device will help doctors find an additional 10 percent of polyps, that would have otherwise gone undetected.
"Anything we can do to not miss any polyps in the colon is going to be an important advance in technology," said Dr. Infantolino.
It's something Chris is thankful for.
"This is now an innovative procedure, something above and beyond. It's just absolutely wonderful. I'm so happy," said Chris.
It's recommended everyone should get a colonoscopy starting at age 50, unless there are problems or a family history. If no polyps are found, you usually don't need another one for 10 years.
RELATED LINKS:
www.thirdeyeretroscope.com
www.jeffersonhospital.org
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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