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Researchers update guidance on colorectal cancer screening in patients with IBDs


November 4, 2021

Dr. Sanjay Murthy“We hope this clinical guidance, based on the latest evidence, can help practitioners navigate this often confusing terrain of how to best prevent and manage dysplasia in their IBD patients”- Dr. Sanjay Murthy,Dr. Sanjay Murthy was the lead author in a Clinical Practice Update (CPU) for the American Gastroenterological Association on how to prevent, detect and manage colorectal neoplastic lesions in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) based on the latest evidence. 

Colorectal cancer is one of the most serious complications of IBDs, and for years it was common to preventatively remove part of a patient’s colon if any pre-cancerous neoplasia, also called dysplasia, was found during a colonoscopy. 

However, improvements in the last 20 years in IBD care and colonoscopy technology have dramatically changed how dysplasia is managed in this population. New approaches involve carefully inspecting, sampling and testing dysplasia using newer technologies, and removing most dysplastic lesions endoscopically. 

The clinical practice update, published in Gastroenterology, includes best practice statements encompassing newer definitions of dysplasia, updated methods of endoscopic screening and surveillance, and updated management strategies for dysplastic lesions.

“We hope this clinical guidance, based on the latest evidence, can help practitioners navigate this often confusing terrain of how to best prevent and manage dysplasia in their IBD patients”- Dr. Sanjay Murthy, IBD specialist and associate scientist at The Ottawa Hospital and associate professor and Tier II Clinical Research Chair in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases at the University of Ottawa.

Authors: Sanjay K Murthy, Joseph D Feuerstein, Geoffrey C Nguyen, Fernando S Velayos

Funding: This expert review was commissioned and approved by the American Gastroenterological Association Institute Clinical Practice Updates Committee and the American Gastroenterological Association Governing Board. All research at The Ottawa Hospital is also enabled by The Ottawa Hospital Foundation.

The Ottawa Hospital is a leading academic health, research and learning hospital proudly affiliated with the University of Ottawa.   

Media Contact 
Amelia Buchanan
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Ottawa Hospital Research Institute
613-297-8315
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