What does a positive Cologuard test mean?

What is immediately apparent from these numbers is that Cologuard rarely misses cancer. However, if we count polyps as a significant finding, there are plenty of false-positive results (45%) and plenty of false-negatives too (34%). So is Cologuard a good test overall?

Retroflexion in the right colon: Why to do it.

Should retroflexion in the right colon become a routine part of screening colonoscopy? Let's frame this question with the following facts: Colonoscopy is less-protective against right-sided cancers (which implies that colonoscopy is less-effective at finding or removing right-sided polyps...

Retroflexion in the right colon: How to do it.

Since the name of my site is Retroflexions, it's about time I wrote an article about how to retroflex! More specifically, how does one retroflex in the right colon? (Fair warning: This article is probably only interesting to gastroenterologists.)

Retroflexion as a necessary maneuver to resect a large colonic polyp.

Sometimes repositioning the lesion is what it takes to get it done. A better angle between the snare and the polyp can be the difference between sliding over the top or capturing the lesion. In this case, retroflexing the scope in the ascending colon was the key maneuver needed to get the rest of the polyp out.

Marriage: It’s good for a man’s colon!

In keeping with the theme of women being smarter than men, the authors found no association between the happiness of the marriage or the degree of support from their husbands for women who chose to get a colonoscopy. Basically, women are just better at taking care of themselves independently without the need for their husbands approval, input, or coercion.

Do you need to stop taking aspirin for a colonoscopy?

With all this talk about bleeding, it should come as no surprise that "Should I stop my aspirin?" is one of the more common questions that I get asked by patients who are being seen to arrange screening colonoscopy. Luckily, this question has been answered already by several of the gastroenterology societies. For the average patient on aspirin...

My doctor found a colon polyp. When do I need to repeat a colonoscopy?

If you notice, the basic idea here is pretty simple. According to the guidelines, there are really only a few options for follow-up intervals for colonoscopy: 10 years (negative exam), 5 years (low risk polyps), and 3 years (high risk polyps). Less than 3 years is only recommended in the truly unusual case of a large polyp burden or invasive cancer in a polyp. And that's it.

Find the hidden polyp! Colon cancer screening in action!

I thought it would be a good time to show a real-life example of colorectal cancer prevention in action. Let's pretend that you are a friendly neighborhood gastroenterologist, just minding your own business and doing a screening colonoscopy on a patient.