Cutting time to spend on scanning the lungs for possible cancer, the doctors are the University College of London, use a telescopic tube to diagnose the disease that normally takes days before the results could come out.

This is the latest telescopic tube that the doctors at the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust are using to start with vital treatment sooner with a single procedure and are allowing them to assess the severity and type of the cancer.

The new device called endobronchial ultrasound is a flexible tube for letting the doctors see the lungs inside as well as for taking a tissue sample in one go.  It will involve inserting the EBUS down someone’s throat and guided by a small camera that is fitted in the tube. Then, there is an ultrasound scanner that is attached to one end of this tube for taking a scan, while there is a small needle for taking a tissue sample.

This was part of a three-year old trial conducted by the UCLH revealed that this method could cut the time to take a patient’s hospital appointment and a decision as to the best treatment course. Usually, patients have to wait for 14 days in order to come up with a decision versus those who need 29 days through conventional techniques.