Modern Colonoscopy Continues to Evolve and Improve

This is not your father’s colonoscopy. A generation ago, it seemed that colonoscopy had probably peaked and couldn’t get much better. Colonoscopy became the method of choice for colorectal cancer screening and prevention. The impact of colonoscopy on decreasing mortality from colorectal cancer was documented and proven. But, as the data accumulated, it also became clear that there were colon cancers diagnosed in a small percentage of patients who had negative colonoscopies in the recent past. Most of these cancers were in the right side of the colon. Fortunately, colonoscopy has changed to address these issues. A new generation of experts have set a higher bar for colonoscopy and have shown the ways that colonoscopy can improve and rise to greater levels of achievement.

If there could be an epicenter of modern colonoscopy, it would have to be placed in Indianapolis at Indiana University (IU). Drs Douglas Rex and Charles Kahi from IU have been without a doubt at the forefront of the revolution in colonoscopy with a focus on improving the prevention of colon cancer. They are the guest editors for this issue of the Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Clinics of North America , which is dedicated to “Advances in Colonoscopy.” They have taken a comprehensive approach and have gathered a formidable group of international experts to cooperate in covering all the key topics that must be understood and mastered. From new insights into colon cancer biology and different polyp-cancer pathways, from descriptions of new techniques and technologies for detecting, diagnosing, and removing colon lesions, from better colon preps, to improving operator standards and quality, this issue has it all. For most gastrointestinal endoscopists, colonoscopy is the most important and frequently performed endoscopic procedure. If you want to perform colonoscopy at the highest level, this issue of the Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Clinics of North America is essential reading.

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