More than 15 million colonoscopies are performed in the United States every year, and in at least 20 percent of those, gastroenterologists end up removing precancerous growths from the colon. Eliminating these early-stage lesions, known as polyps, is the best way to prevent colon cancer from developing.
To reduce the risk of tearing the colon during this procedure, doctors often inject a saline solution into the space below the lesion, forming a “cushion” that lifts the polyp so that it’s easier to remove safely. However, this cushion doesn’t last long.
MIT researchers have now devised an alternative — a solution that can be injected as a liquid but turns into a solid gel once it reaches the tissue, creating a more stable and longer-lasting cushion.
“That really makes a huge difference to the gastroenterologist who is performing the procedure, to ensure that there’s a stable area that they can then resect using endoscopic tools,” says Giovanni Traverso, an assistant professor in MIT’s Department of Mechanical Engineering and a gastroenterologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Read more at Massachusetts Institute of Technology