For those of you who may be less inclined to check for colon cancer due to the invasive nature of a colonoscopy and the radioactive dangers posed by a virtual colonoscopy, this may be cause to reconsider. That's because doctors with the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., recently concluded that CT scans of the colon, when used in combination with a technique called adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction (ASIR), can be performed with half the radiation dose of a normal virtual colonoscopy, while keeping image quality high in a new study published in the American Journal of Roentgenology.
ASIR, the American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS) says, allows radiologists to better image quality by reducing the noise in an image. The technique, reports Reuters, was launched in 2008 by General Electric.
The sharper image portrayed then allows for radiologists to use much lower doses of radiation in their scans.
Overall, 18 patients were used in the study, with some undergoing the procedure using a standard dose of radiation, and others receiving the lesser dose of radiation in conjunction with the ASIR technique. A dummy colon also was tested.
According to Dr. C. Daniel Johnson of the Mayo Clinic, the study's lead author, "no significant image quality differences" could be deciphered between the two groups of patients.
"This new technique allows us to use far less radiation than even a typical abdominal CT scan without compromising image quality," Johnson said. "The fact that we can now screen patients with an increasingly lower dose can allay concerns, attract more patients to be screened and ultimately save tens of thousands of lives each year."
To learn more:
- here's the ARRS press release
- here's the study's abstract
- check out this Reuters story