Does it matter which doctor does your colonoscopy? The sad truth is, it matters tremendously. It’s your butt that is on the line. We certainly expect that all physicians performing coloscopies should provide excellent protection. Unfortunately, this is not true.

A group of twelve board-certified, experienced gastroenterologists in a single practice outside Chicago demonstrated a more than ten-fold difference in polyp detection. This means that there is more than a one-thousand percent variation in finding pre-cancerous polyps among the partners. If you were screened by one of the doctors in the group functioning below the established national standard, you received virtually no protection. Your risk of developing colorectal cancer remains the same as if you were never screened.

So what is ADR and why is it important?

The American College of Gastroenterology developed a simple measure of quality. The ADR or adenoma detection rate is simply the proportion of patients presenting for screening that harbor at least one adenoma (a pre-cancerous polyp). The minimum standard set is 25.

Select your colonoscopist carefully. When you schedule your appointment, ask, “What is my Dr.’s ADR?” Be empowered! If the practice cannot tell you the score or the score is below 25, keep searching. Get your screening on time by a high-AD colonoscopist. This alone will reduce your risk of dying of colon cancer by 90%. If all doctors performing colonoscopy maintained the minimum standard of quality, we would save 25,000 lives every year!