Advanced endoscopy results in fewer patient complications and faster recoveries than for those who undergo more invasive diagnostic techniques or surgery. MetroHealth has a team of highly trained advanced endoscopists who have years of experience and perform a high annual volume of procedures.

"We are doing procedures at the cutting edge,'' said MetroHealth gastroenterologist Alok Jain, MD, who has specialized training in advanced therapeutic endoscopy from Geisinger Medical Center in Pennsylvania.

Advanced endoscopy is especially useful for staging tumors correctly. "It's quite useful in deciding on the accurate management of a cancer and bridging patients through treatment," said Dr. Jain.

With endoscopic ultrasound, or EUS, a gastroenterologist has a much better view of the pancreas and bile duct. "We can see lesions as small as 1 to 2 millimeters. We couldn't see these previously and sample them safely," said Dr. Jain. "Because of the better views, it's possible to catch a tumor earlier.''

EUS is also very helpful for correctly identifying small lesions seen on previous endoscopic exams and for evaluating pancreas and bile duct disorders.

Another procedure, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, or ERCP, is used primarily to treat conditions of the bile ducts, including gallstones, inflammatory strictures, leaks and cancer.

"Placing stents in the GI tract to open a narrowed area is another procedure where we have made significant progress,'' said Dr. Jain. "A stent in the esophagus, for example, can make it easy for a patient to swallow soon after the procedure who may not have been able to swallow any food for weeks.''

Dr. Jain is also experienced with endoscopic mucosal resection. If a cancer is found in the earlier stages and limited to one or two layers of the esophagus or colon, he can inject fluid to raise and separate the lesion from the other layers and remove the lesion completely, thus avoiding extensive surgery.

Dr. Jain tries to see patients within two weeks of receiving a physician referral.

"I don't like to delay treatment and understand that many times, patients are keen on getting the procedure done without delay. So I try to schedule procedures directly with a referring physician's note,'' he said.

Call the Physician Referral Service: 216-957-3222 or toll-free 1-866-260-5376

• Roy Ferguson, MD, Director, Endoscopy Unit
• Alok Kumar Jain, MD
• Hemangi Kale, MD
• Annette M. Kyprianou, MD
• John S. Maxwell, MD