Visitors interested in frequent updates of the most current patient-level GI news items available should register for our free ACG electronic newsletter at left.
Professional-Level Current News Summaries with Press Links
The August 6, 2008 professional-level ACG SmartBrief from the American College of Gastroenterology can be viewed here.
The August 11, 2008 professional-level Today in Medicine compiled by the American Gastroenterological Association in affiliation with U.S. News & World Report can be viewed here.
Selected Recent News Clips
July 2008
Colorectal Cancer Screening Rates Still Too Low
ScienceDaily | July 14, 2008 | Although colorectal cancer screening tests are proven to reduce colorectal cancer mortality, only about half of U.S. men and women 50 and older receive the recommended tests, according to a report in the July 2008 issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.
Changes in FDA labeling law for gluten-free items begin in August
Atlanticville | July 10, 2008 | A definition of "gluten-free" has been developed for voluntary use on product labels, effective in August. Meat, fish, poultry, eggs and highly refined oils are not included, but any other processed food may put "glutenfree" on its label if it contains less than 20 parts per million (ppm) of gluten. There will also be new retail labeling guidelines in the fall regarding the country of origin of beef, lamb, pork, fish, shellfish, fruits, vegetables and peanuts. The information must state whether a product comes from the United States only, foreign sources only or is of mixed origin. Restaurants, cafeterias, food stands, and a few other small entities are exempt from this regulation.
March 2008
March 25, 2008
Phospho-soda Colonoscopy Prep Can Cause Permanent Kidney Damage. Concern about this risk cause us to abandon the routine use of phospho-soda solution and tablet preps in 2005.
March 10, 2008
Today's Durango Herald print edition carried a wire story referencing the JAMA article discussed below. "Flat colon growths prime cancer agents: More likely to harbor disease than polyps, study shows." Please read on...
March 5, 2008
Easily Overlooked Lesions Tied to Colon Cancer (New York Times)
This New York Times article discusses a study reported in today's Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) by Dr. Roy Soetikno and others at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System. Their paper emphasizes the importance of a known challenge for colonoscopists; specifically, the fact that many colonic neoplasms (benign or malignant growths) are not easily visible obvious masses, but rather appear only as subtle flat or depressed lesions which must be identified by changes in the surface texture (color changes, friability, spontaneous bleeding and deformity of the colonic wall). These lesions are called nonpolypoid colorectal neoplasms (NP-CRN).
We search carefully for NP-CRNs in addition to polypoid neoplasms during every colonoscopy performed at the Southwest Endoscopy Center, and we design our approach to colonoscopy preparation and performance procedures to maximize our detection rates.
See our Colonoscopy FAQs for additional information about flat lesions in the colon.
As part of our longstanding interest in and commitment to endoscopic quality, we have participated as a research site for the Clinical Outcomes Research Initiative since 1999. This project is directed by Dr. David Lieberman of the University of Oregon Health Sciences Center, who wrote the JAMA editorial accompanying Dr. Soetikno's article and who is quoted in the New York Times article.
While the optimal methods for detecting and removing NP-CRNs remain under active investigation, this study points out the importance for those undergoing colonoscopy to select an expert endoscopist who has been formally trained in endoscopic practice and who is experienced and interested in the recognition of flat lesions such as those described in this article. The endoscopist must also be experienced in the techniques of endoscopic mucosal resection necessary to remove these lesions. It also points out the importance of attention to optimal preprocedure bowel cleansing and to the ongoing institutional measurement and monitoring of colonoscopy quality markers, such as cecal intubation rates, withdrawal times, adenoma detection rates, and complication monitoring, which comprise much of our ongoing internal quality improvement efforts at Southwest Endoscopy.
Patients or physicians interested in copies of the JAMA paper or accompanying editorial should contact our office.
March 5, 2008
New Guidelines Update Recommendations on Colorectal Cancer Screening
Strong Preference for Tests That Can Prevent Colon Cancer, Including Colonoscopy
A new guideline on colorectal cancer screening released today by an expert group representing a broad spectrum of health care organizations, including the American College of Gastroenterology (ACG), the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and the American Cancer Society (ACS), offers recommendations for various alternatives for colorectal cancer detection and states a strong preference for screening tests that can prevent colorectal cancer. The ASGE and the ACG are members of the U.S. Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer and were participants in the guideline development process.
Joint ACG-ASGE Press Release
Screening and Surveillance for the Early Detection of Colorectal Cancer and Adenomatous Polyps, 2008: A Joint Guideline from the American Cancer Society, the US Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer, and the American College of Radiology
February 2008
ASGE Reassures Patients of Endoscopy Safety
Oak Brook, Ill. – February 28, 2008 – The American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) wants to reassure patients that gastrointestinal endoscopy is a safe and effective procedure. The recent news that patients at an endoscopy center in Nevada may have been infected with hepatitis C that could have been spread when clinic staff used unsafe injection practices related to the administration of anesthesia medication shines the spotlight on the importance of infection control practices. This incident should not deter patients from undergoing any endoscopic procedure, as infections such as this occur rarely.
“It is important to realize that the exposures did not result from the procedure itself but from the use of unsafe injection practices related to the medication administration. Endoscopy, when practiced by expertly trained physicians who follow the practice guidelines set forth by the ASGE, is a safe, well-tolerated and potentially life-saving procedure,” said Grace H. Elta, MD, FASGE, president of the ASGE.
The ASGE is committed to setting the highest-quality standards for gastrointestinal endoscopy through its safety guidelines and the training of its members so that patients receive the best and safest care possible.
We adhere to safe injection practices at the Southwest Endoscopy. Needles, syringes, single-use medication vials and single use instruments are never reused at our facility. Our flexible endoscopes are subjected to standardized high level disinfection procedures, in accordance with manufacturer's recommendations and our industry's accepted widely accepted guidelines. Accessory instruments of a critical nature designed and approved for reuse are steam autoclave sterilized between procedures.
Based on the available medical literature, the chance that a serious infection could be acquired by undergoing endoscopy when an instrument has been processed according to established guidelines in a facility adhering to safe injection practices been estimated to be approximately 1 in 1,800,000.
Selected News Archives
November 2007
November 26, 2007
Doctors are concerned about the radiation use associated with the exploding risk of CT scanning
September 2007
September 26, 2007
Coronary artery disease is highly associated with colon cancer and advanced premalignant polyps. This study, reported in today's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) showed that patients found on angiography to have coronary artery disease had very high rates of asymptomatic colon cancers (4.4%), advanced colon polyps (18.4%) and potentially premalignant colon polyps (34%). All patients found to have coronary artery disease should undergo colonoscopy as soon as it is medically feasible. Colon cancer and coronary artery disease share several risk factors: smoking, high-fat diet, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and sedentary lifestyle.
September 19, 2007
Multiple underlying medical conditions and the use of warfarin (Coumadin) increase risk for colonoscopy-related complications. The Southwest Endoscopy Center was one of the 19 research sites participating in this study. Gastroenterologists need to better understand the complications of colonoscopy in order to make this procedure as safe as possible for our patients.
September 13, 2007
Vitamin C plus dietary fat might mean more cancers
Suits allege laxative caused kidney failure
While this popular colonoscopy cleansing prep remains in widespread use, Digestive Health discontinued the routine use of phospho-soda products in November 2005 because of safety concerns.
August 2007
August 13, 2007
Coffee drinking appears to reduce risk for liver cancer.
August 9, 2007
Preventive steps could save 100,000 U.S. lives: study
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