Published online Oct 14, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i38.13820
Revised: May 11, 2014
Accepted: July 16, 2014
Published online: October 14, 2014
Processing time: 191 Days and 3.3 Hours
Although colorectal cancer (CRC) has no longer been the leading cancer killer worldwide for years with the exponential development in computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography/CT as well as virtual colonoscopy for early detection, the CRC related mortality is still high. The objective of CRC screening is to reduce the burden of CRC and thereby the morbidity and mortality rates of the disease. It is believed that this goal can be achieved by regularly screening the average-risk population, enabling the detection of cancer at early, curable stages, and polyps before they become cancerous. Large-scale screening with multimodality imaging approaches plays an important role in reaching that goal to detect polyps, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis and CRC in early stage. This article reviews kinds of presentative imaging procedures for various screening options and updates detecting, staging and re-staging of CRC patients for determining the optimal therapeutic method and forecasting the risk of CRC recurrence and the overall prognosis. The combination use of virtual colonoscopy and conventional endoscopy, advantages and limitations of these modalities are also discussed.
Core tip: Colorectal cancer is a largely preventable cancer, but still causes approximately 50000 deaths each year in the United States. This scenario makes it interesting to screen the risk population for genuine cancer and precancerous conditions. While there are many potential screening modalities, a particularly interesting approach is virtual colonoscopy. The rational combination use, advantages and limitations of these modalities are discussed in this review.