NBI Enhances the Early NSCLC Detection

The Journal of Thoracic Oncology published in its September issue a study regarding the narrow-band imagining. Researchers discovered that this mechanism supporting bronchoscopy may serve its purpose as another means of detecting the bronchoscopic cancer in its early development stages and even more, this type of imaging enhances the specificity of this cancer variant.

The narrow-band imaging represents one of the newest bronchoscopic technologies. Its alternative cousins are the white light (WLB) and auto-fluorescence imaging (AFI) bronchoscopic cancer detection devices. These technologies were created in order to increase the physicians` capacity to discover the presence of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). If the non-small cell lung cancer is found in its early stages when it is located on the lungs` surface, the chances to cure the suffering people increase considerably. This is why bronchoscopic technologies were developed; they help researchers with the earlier discovery of this cancer illness.

Medicine Doctor of the Pneumology and Critical Care Medicine Department from the University of Heidelberg in Germany, Mr. Felix Herth led the team of researchers who wished to discover the truth behind the bronchoscopic technologies and their stated efficiency. Their study lasted for ten months and comprised studying people suffering from bronchoscopic cancer. This meant that the ill persons were divided into three groups differentiated from another by the type of treatment used, thus, the researchers had to study groups getting white light, auto-fluorescence and narrow-band imaging. The scientists monitored the airway mucosa of the patients and those that seemed modified in any way became subjects to a biopsy.

The results of the study were very concise. It was discovered that narrow-band imaging is the most efficient technology since it gave the highest specificity compared to the other two types of imaging. Moreover, considering the fact that 30 percent from the 57 studied people presented intraepithelial neoplasia, the team of scientists concluded that auto-fluorescence and narrow-band imaging bronchoscopies are much more sensitive than their cousin, white light imaging. This happened because all the patients found with intraepithelial neoplasia were the subjects of the auto-fluorescence and narrow-band imaging bronchoscopies study groups. As Felix Herth explained: “This research shows that when diagnosing early stage lung cancer, using NBI may be a better option than AFI because it increases specificity without compromising sensitivity. Continued research on these detection methods is necessary to further understand the best, most accurate ways to increase early diagnosis in lung cancer.”