Open wide: This camera pill could improve cancer detection

A "camera in a capsule" could revolutionize bowel imaging technology, replacing traditional colonoscopies in diagnosing bowel cancer. 

York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in the United Kingdom has been awarded $3.8 million / £3 million / AU$5.8 million to conduct national research called "ColoCap" – colon capsule endoscopy.

A small "easy-to-swallow" capsule containing a camera is swallowed by the patient, which captures multiple photographs of the inner bowel lining as it proceeds through the stomach and small intestine to the large bowel. The images are downloaded via a separate device worn by the patient, and the capsule ultimately passes out of the body. 

"This provides consultants with a minimally invasive, remotely accessible, and innovative tool to diagnose bowel cancer, colitis, and pre-malignant polyps," says the Trust, adding that the process has "significantly less impact on the environment than a colonoscopy."

A colonoscopy is the traditional means of diagnosing bowel cancer, and is regarded as the "gold standard". However, this telescope test is an invasive process that involves a colonoscope being inserted through the patient's anus and into the colon. 

(Incidentally, this is an imaging field that's dominated by Olympus Medical – and for years the losses of its imaging division were seen as part of the wider R&D remit to improve cameras and lenses.)

While a colonoscopy presents advantages – namely the ability to take samples and remove polyps during the same procedure – it also presents numerous challenges and inconveniences, such as the requirement to go to hospital, causing long waiting times, as well as the discomfort and emotional distress of patients.

By contrast, colon capsule endoscopy can be performed at a doctor's surgery or even at home, alleviating the waiting times – and is considerably less stressful on the patient.

"Colon capsule endoscopy does not suit everyone, it is not successful for everyone, and we have yet to work out which patents it suits best," says Professor James Turvill, consultant gastroenterologist at the Trust. "But some find it a much better experience than a colonoscopy and what is exciting is that it can be swallowed remotely, supported by a virtual consultation." 

"It has taken 15 years of hard work to get to this stage and it is a real privilege to think that I am working on a project that may change the way bowel cancer is diagnosed in future, both in the UK and internationally. Working on the ColoCap project is the pinnacle of my career and comes as we complete the largest evaluation ever undertaken into the use of colon capsule endoscopy in bowel cancer diagnosis."

You can read more at the York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust website.

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