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Lake Charles

Colon Cancer Care

Using The Latest Technology In Treatment of Colorectal Cancer

Louisiana has the third highest incidence and the third highest mortality rate of colorectal cancer in the United States. Lake Charles Memorial is on the front lines in the fight to defeat this often silent killer. Lakes Charles Memorial is proud to offer high definition Olympus equipment for colonoscopies and diagnosis of colon cancer. High-def imaging has been shown to improve polyp detection because it allows for smaller polyps to be discovered than with standard definition colonoscopies.

Depending on the results of these highly sophisticated exams, our specialized team of gastroenterologists, radiologists, pathologists, surgeons, radiation oncologists, medical oncologists, and technologists provide diagnosis and treatment options based on your particular diagnosis.

Although polyps or abnormalities aren’t always cancer-related, should more advanced treatment be necessary, Memorial offers the latest therapies, including complex 4D cancer-fighting technology such as intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) as well as customized chemotherapy infusion services based on the type and phase of cancer. The newest colorectal surgery techniques, such as TAMIS, are also available.

Diagnosis and Treatment

  • Colonoscopy: Colonoscopy or colposcopy is the endoscopic examination of the large bowel and the distal part of the small. If your cancer is small, localized, completely contained within a polyp and in a very early stage, your doctor may be able to remove it completely during a colonoscopy.
  • Small Bowel Capsule Endoscopy: Capsule Endoscopy lets your doctor examine the lining of the middle part of your gastrointestinal tract, which includes the three portions of the small intestine (duodenum, jejunum, ileum). Your doctor will give you a pill-sized video camera for you to swallow. This camera has its own light source and takes pictures of your small intestine as it passes through. These pictures are sent to a small recording device you have to wear on your body. Your doctor will be able to view these pictures at a later time and might be able to provide you with useful information regarding your small intestine.
  • Bravo Tests: The Bravo Capsule test determines the amount of acid that comes back into your esophagus (food pipe) from your stomach. It can tell your doctor the amount of acid reflux you have and length of time you experience it as you go about your normal activities. This procedure is also used to determine if you have gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
  • TAMIS: Transanal minimally invasive techniques are for excision of rectal tumors that avoids conventional pelvic resectional surgery along with its risks and side effects. This surgery uses ordinary laparoscopic instruments to achieve high-quality local excision.
  • Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy uses drugs to destroy cancer cells. Chemotherapy for colon cancer is usually given after surgery if the cancer is larger or has spread to the lymph nodes. In this way, chemotherapy may kill any cancer cells that remain in the body and help reduce the risk of cancer recurrence. Chemotherapy might also be used before an operation to shrink a large cancer so that it's easier to remove with surgery. Sometimes it's combined with radiation therapy.
  • Radiation therapy: Radiation therapy uses IMRT, in some cases, to shrink a large cancer before an operation so that it can be removed more easily. When surgery isn't an option, radiation therapy might be used to relieve symptoms, such as pain.
  • Targeted drug therapy: Targeted drug treatments focus on specific abnormalities present within cancer cells. By blocking these abnormalities, targeted drug treatments can cause cancer cells to die. Targeted drugs are usually combined with chemotherapy. Targeted drugs are typically reserved for people with advanced colon cancer.
  • Immunotherapy: Immunotherapy is a drug treatment that uses your immune system to fight cancer. Your body's disease-fighting immune system may not attack your cancer because the cancer cells produce proteins that blind the immune system cells from recognizing the cancer cells. Immunotherapy works by interfering with that process.