New research from Germany found that Narrow-band imaging bronchoscopy (NBI) may be a better alternative than autoflourescence imaging (AFI) in detecting early stage lung cancer. In this study, researchers divided Patients into groups receiving WFB, AFI or NBI bronchoscopies and any observed abnormal airway mucosa was biopsied.
This study was published in the September 2009 issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology. Narrow band imaging (NBI) videobronchoscopy is a new technique aimed at lung cancer detection.
Felix J.F. Herth, M.D. of the Department of Pneumology and Critical Care Medicine at the University of Heidelberg in Germany and his team of researchers Involved in this study.
Researchers conducted a 10-month review of patients in need of airway screening and surveillance, Out of 57 patients, 30% were diagnosed with intraepithelial neoplasia. They found that those observed with NBI and AFI bronchoscopies experienced significantly superior sensitivities when compared to WLB alone.
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, said Dr. Herth. Continued research on these detection methods is necessary to further understand the best, most accurate ways to increase early diagnosis in lung cancer.