Changing technology could allow specialists other than gastroenterologists to perform most colon cancer screening tests, predicts the American Gastroenterological Association’s Future Trends Committee. Although the demand for colonoscopy has increased dramatically, improvements in CT scans, fecal occult blood testing, and camera-containing pills could replace the traditional test, meaning that radiologists and internists, for example, could perform it, according to The New York Times.
However, some experts say traditional colonoscopy still will be needed to confirm CT scan results and to remove colon polyps. And even if the need for gastroenterologists to perform colonoscopies lessens, the specialty won’t be out of business. “We have a lot of organs,” one gastroenterologist told the Times. “The esophagus, the stomach, the small bowel, the liver, the pancreas. I think we’ve got a lot to do.”
