“In addition, traditional endoscopy didn’t allow us to
biopsy a suspicious sample; it had to be a separate
procedure. SpyGlass technology allows us to do that.”
—James T. Sing, Jr., DO
Early-stage gastrointestinal disease is difficult to detect because there are no
symptoms and there’s no screening test for GI cancer. With new technology,
diagnosis and treatment of GI disease and cancers now benefit patients whose
conditions couldn’t be determined with traditional endoscopy or ultrasound.
W
hen patients have symptoms that
aren’t easily diagnosed, doctors
may perform endoscopy, a
procedure that uses a tiny camera attached
to a long, thin tube that is threaded through
a body passageway or opening. This allows
them to look inside the body for disease,
tumors or other issues. Sometimes the
endoscope is used during minimally
invasive surgery, such as removing tumors
or polyps.
Leading Edge Technology
Scott & White is one of only 15 hospitals
in Texas with advanced endoscopic
technology that helps to make a complete
and accurate diagnosis of issues related to
the biliary system, which helps produce
and transport bile by tubes that carry it
from the liver to the gallbladder and small
intestine. “SpyGlass™ Direct Visualization
System is really useful when we are unable
to determine a specific condition with
traditional endoscopy or ultrasound,” says
James T. Sing, Jr., DO, chief of endoscopy
and director of the gastrointestinal tumor
board at Scott & White Healthcare; and
assistant professor of internal medicine,
Texas A&M Health Science Center
College of Medicine. “In addition,
traditional endoscopy didn’t allow us to
biopsy a suspicious sample; it had to be a
separate procedure. SpyGlass technology
allows us to do that.”
The SpyGlass device consists of a high
resolution fiber optic tube attached to a
camera and a screen. Being able to look
directly into, and to take clear color
pictures of, a patient’s bile duct improves
diagnosis by helping to identify stones,
strictures or mass causing obstructions of
the bile duct. “SpyGlass can assist with
making a tissue diagnosis through biopsy
or direct visualization of the bile duct
lesion. This is a huge factor,” says Dr. Sing.
Direct visualization of the biliary system
has not been accessible in the past. Instead,
physicians relied on ultrasound or
traditional endoscopy that produced X-ray
images. “This new technology makes these
views much clearer and allows us to more
accurately diagnose benign conditions such
as common bile duct stones, obtain biopsies
and assist with staging bile duct cancers for
potential surgery,” Dr. Sing says.
“We model our therapy to our
patients’ needs. All the tools are present at
Scott & White for us to establish an
accurate and safe diagnosis in a timely
fashion, and in one endoscopy encounter,”
says Dr. Sing. “Scott & White has the
advanced technology resources to help
detect, diagnose, treat, stage and palliate a
variety of cancers of the GI tract. The
earlier the detection, the better the chance
for successful outcome.” ■
Winter 09 THE CATALYST
29