Project Description:

Colorectal cancer, which is characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in the colon or rectum, is the third most prevalent cancer and the fourth deadliest cancer worldwide. A colonoscopy is a procedure in which physicians visualize the inner walls of the colon and search for potentially cancerous material. Although patients undergo a preparatory procedure to clear waste from their colon before the colonoscopy, there is often still residual material. Physicians will use suction within the colonoscope to clear this material, but it is common for the solid waste to clog the suction channel. Suction clogs are difficult and time-consuming to clean and may be so severe that the physician needs to replace the scope mid-colonoscopy or reschedule the procedure. If physicians opt to complete the procedure anyway, they miss approximately 50% of potentially cancerous material due to limited visibility. Currently, doctors performing colonoscopies do not have a way to effectively filter out solid material to prevent suction clogging. Our team, collaborating with gastroenterologist Dr. Sappati Biyyani, has created the EndoSieve, a novel filtering device that is inserted through the suction channel of the colonoscope to prevent solid material from entering the suction channel and clogging it. It deploys into a flat, plate-shaped mesh filter that covers the end of the channel and forms a tight seal when suction is applied. Once filtering is complete, the device can collapse to fit back through the suction channel, minimizing interruption to the procedure. With Endosieve, physicians have improved visibility, increased cancer detection rates, and reduced incidence of rescheduled procedures.