Setting the Shortest Examination Time of Gastroscopy to Improve the Detection Rate of Upper Gastrointestinal Tumors

This multicenter, prospective, interventional study aims to include 2000 gastroscopic procedures and investigate the relationship between procedure time and lesion detection rate in tertiary endoscopic centers in China. At the first stage, the researchers observe the actual procedure time of gastroscopies without affecting the natural behavior of endoscopists. At the second stage, a minimal time limit will be set for each procedure based on the observational results of the first stage. The primary study outcome is focal lesion detection rate. Secondary outcomes include detection rate of early upper GI cancer, biopsy rate and adverse event rate.

China is a country with a heavy burden of gastric cancer and esophageal cancer. In 2015, the incidence/mortality of gastric cancer and esophageal cancer in China were 680000/500000 and 220000/200000, respectively. Gastroscopy is the most important means to detect early cancer of gastrointestinal tract. However, due to various factors, the miss rate of clinical significant lesions by gastroscopy is innegligible. Our previous research results showed that the detection rate of early gastric cancer and early esophageal cancer in China was only about 15%. This study aims to include 2000 gastroscopic procedures and investigate the relationship between procedure time and lesion detection rate in tertiary endoscopic centers in China. At the first stage, the researchers observe the actual procedure time of gastroscopies without affecting the natural behavior of endoscopists. Then, researchers collect the data (including focal lesion detection rate, procedure time, detection rate of early upper GI cancer, biopsy rate and adverse event rate) and analyze the minimal procedure time. At the second stage, a minimal time limit will be set for each procedure. Every stage last two months, and potential correlations between lesion detection rate and procedure time will be investigated through subsequent statistical analysis.