Advanced Treatment Advanced Treatmen nt ffor or Cancer C cerr-causing Canc i Cancer-causing P ollyps Polyps Tolga T olga Erim, DO Cleveland Cle veland Clinic Florida, Floridaa, Gastroenterologist Gastroenterologist Remooving pol Removing polyps yps from the colon is standard practicee to reduce the chance of ccolorectal cancer. cancer. But for polyps polyps y larrge or hard to t reach, their remo val duringg a that are large removal colonoscopy is a challenge. challen nge. colonoscopy many patients have ha have traditional surgery surg gery for these th hese Though many “complex polyps,” polyps,” Cleveland Cleveland Clinic ggastroenterologists astroenterologiists “complex new tools and a are using new techniques that require no recover e y times. It’s It’s a procedure called callled stitches or long recovery reesection,” or EMR. An endoscope endoscoope “endoscopic mucosal resection,” flexible tube with w a tiny tinny camera, to which which sm mall is a thin flexible small surrgery tools are attache ed. “Mucosal” refers to the tis sue surgery attached. tissue “resecction” means surgical surgical removal. removal.. of the colon, and “resection” “Manny patients and physicians ph physicians may maay not be familiar famil amiliar liar “Many have access to it locally, ha locally, so these th hese with EMR or do not have polyps are often remo oved e using traditional surgery,” surg gery,” ssays ays polyps removed Cleveland Clinic gastroenterologist gastroenterologist T olga Erim, DO who who Cleveland Tolga advanceed endoscopy endoscopy techniques. “But “B But specializes in advanced gives patients another an nother choice. W ith experienced experiencced EMR gives With performing it, it there is less risk of bbleeding, leediing, ing specialists performing shorter reco overy time compared to sur gerry.” and a much shorter recovery surgery.” proceduree, Cleveland Cleveland Clinic physicians phhysicians ysiciaans During the procedure, employ several several standardized standarrdized procedures to reach and employ remove the polyps. polyps. “For “Forr eexample, xample, bby y injecting saline into i remove they can raise raise the polyp polyp in order to resect resecct it the tissue, they completely. In addition, addition n, newer newer snares, or metal loops, loo ops, completely. (sseal) blood blood vessels vessels make make removal remooval and tools to cauterize (seal) very efficient, Dr. Erim Eriim says. saays. After a follow-up follow-up visit, viisit, very efficient,”” Dr. patients can return their regular physicians. return to th heir re gular ph hysicians. According to reports reports from the National Institutes of Health, patients with large laarge or complex complex polyps polyps shouldd be referred specialty Cleveland refer red for EMR to a sp pecialty ffacility acility such as Cle velaand theyy can Clinic Florida, so the c avoid avoid unnecessary unnecessary surgery. surgery. “We’ve “W We’ve treated patients patientts from as far far away away as South South America,”” Dr. America, Dr. Erim says. saays. y “Because of our expertise expertise and a with eexperience xperience i ith EMR, EMR this thi is i the th appropriate i t place l e to t polyps. We’ve referral come for hard-to-treat pol yps. W e’ve become a refer rral it.”” center for it. For a consultation call For all 800-639-DOCTOR, 800-639-DOCTOR, or visit isit clevelandclinicflorida.org/coloncancer cle velandclinicfflorida.or a.org/coloncancer for for more mor ore information. inf formation.