“Studies have shown that in regions/countries where the number of preventive colonoscopies increases, deaths from the disease decrease and diagnoses of precancerous conditions increase. With colonoscopy we check the large intestine, we can detect polyps and remove them, as about 10% of them can develop into cancer. The development time varies and is estimated at approximately 10-15 years”, emphasizes Mr Mr. Theodosios Parhas Gastroenterologist, Curator of the 1st Gastroenterology Clinic Metropolitan General.

At what age should preventive colonoscopy begin?

Colon cancer is much more common after the age of 50. Of the 10 incidents, 9 involve people over the age of fifty. But in the last 20 years there has been a drop in the average age of onset. While in 2000 it was about 72 years, today it has fallen to 66 years. But the most worrying thing is that there is an increase in the incidence of 2% per year, in people under 50 years old”, the expert points out.
Newer epidemiological data have led the American Gastroenterological Association to recommend preventive colonoscopy starting at age 45. And for those with a family history (1st degree relatives <60 or 2FDR of any age), start screening at 40 or 10 years earlier than the most recent cancer in the family.
According to the results of studies, those born in the 1990s have twice the risk of colon cancer, compared to adults born in the 1950s. The consumption of red meat (the World Health Organization recommends up to 500g per week), the smoking, sedentary lifestyle, obesity and alcohol abuse are the most important risk factors. Diets rich in fiber reduce the risk. Vitamin D, calcium, milk, fish also seem to have a positive effect.

Is colonoscopy a painful examination?

In a modern endoscopy unit, the examinee does not feel anything during the endoscopy. In addition to the gastroenterologist, there is also an anesthetist who will administer a mixture of sedative-analgesic drugs, as a result of which there is absolute safety, but also that the examinee does not feel any discomfort. Instead of atmospheric air, the bowel is insufflated with carbon dioxide, it is expelled much faster, with the result that after the examination is finished there is no discomfort or pain. In difficult colonoscopies, a special water pump can be used which better unfolds the large intestine and shortens the duration of the examination.

What are the new technologies that make the exam easier?

“The endoscopes we use in our own Gastroenterology Clinic are of the latest generation, i.e. high resolution, as a result of which we can better control the intestinal mucosa. Virtual chromoendoscopy is also commonplace, i.e. instead of spraying the intestine with special dyes, which takes time, but helps to identify precancerous lesions, this is now done with virtual chromoendoscopy. Finally, there is artificial intelligence for the identification of polyps, that is, the computer alone can recognize polyps and also classify them” concludes Mr. Parhas.