Virtual colonoscopy in real life - Is it that good?

Background: Colon cancer is the main cause of moratality among the gastrointestinal cancers in Israel. Early detection of the average risk population is recommended from the age of 50 to 75 years. Private departments of radiology aggressively advertise virtual colonoscopy for the early detection of colon cancer, although it is not recognised as such in any country. Methods: We collected all cases in which virtual colonoscopy was followed by endoscopic colonoscopy in the same patient from four medical centers in Israel. Results: Total discrepancy between the results of the two examinations was found in 2/3 of the patients. In some cases colon cancer was missed. Conclusions: The results presented herein, raise many questions and "red lights" as to the use of virtual colonoscopy in its present form for screening purposes in Israel unless it is in the setting of clinical research.