Sutab®: A revolution in colonoscopy preparation
By Nitish Bhamidipati
What is a colonoscopy?
A colonoscopy is an important procedure which can be used to examine gut health and check for potential signs of cancer. In this procedure, a flexible tube with a camera on the end, called an endoscope, is pushed through the colon as it records images of the bowels.
Why are colonoscopy screenings important?
Colon cancers may often grow undetected. This means that if screening happens when someone starts feeling symptoms, a potential cancer may have already spread far throughout the body. The same principles apply to any gastrointestinal disease, such as IBD. IBD can often go undiagnosed, and once it starts showing symptoms it makes the treatment process much more complicated. Screenings are an incredibly important part of preventive care, so don’t wait until symptoms start to present, especially if you are over 50 years of age, when, according to the American Cancer Society and numerous research studies, the risk of colon cancer dramatically increases.
To ensure that the colonoscopy is as accurate as possible and the procedure is successful, it is important to prepare a clean bowel before the procedure.
How does colonoscopy preparation work?
To summarize, many decades ago colonoscopy preparation was an extremely grueling process which required weeks of ingesting lubricants to clean the digestive tract. In 1984, a new type of colonoscopy preparation, a liquid solution, came along called GoLYTELY. These liquid treatments were revolutionary in their ability to make preparing for a colonoscopy much easier. What had before taken days of preparation now only took a matter of hours, yet still involved drinking a nasty substance. Over the years minor improvements in patient comfort and effectiveness have been made to the bowel-cleansing solutions, such as MiraLAXⓇ, a widely used laxative nowadays.
In fact, major hospitals have colonoscopy preparation plans that involve the use of multiple modern-day laxatives: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/21217-miralax-gatorade-bowel-preparation-instructions
But now, a new era of colonoscopy preparation has begun.
New Treatment
An FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approved pill regimen, called Sutab®, has shown equal results to the previous liquid treatment for colonoscopy preparation in studies published in the American Journal for Gastroenterology.
Sutab is a pill regimen consisting of 12 pills the day before the procedure and 12 pills the day of the procedure. It’s still important to drink at least 48 ounces of water the day before and the day of the procedure. While it won’t take away the time spent in the bathroom from the laxative, it takes away the gulping down chalky, nauseating liquid aspect of the preparation.
The Good…but also the Bad
While colonoscopy screenings are common and widespread, around 3 in 10 U.S. adults aged 50 to 75 are not up to date on their colonoscopy screening. Many experts attribute this to wanting to avoid the preparation for colonoscopies. With the introduction of Sutab®, more people will be willing to get their colonoscopy screening done.
However, with great utility comes great cost. The revolutionary medication that is Sutab® comes with a price of ~ $120 or more, and most insurances do not pay for Sutab®, which is classified as a Tier 4 medication, with a higher tier usually relating to a higher cost to purchase. If you can afford this medication, or insurance covers it, it is strongly recommended to discuss it with your doctor before an upcoming colonoscopy.
If you’re able to get your hands on Sutab® for your colonoscopy preparation, you might find that a colonoscopy procedure isn’t nearly as bad as everyone says it is.
**Note: I am just an informed high schooler giving my take on IBD with as many facts to back up my arguments as possible. If you are considering Sutab®, please discuss it with your doctor and gastrointestinal specialist.
Citations: The majority of the information used in this post comes from a Washington Post article released July 31st, 2022 titled, “At last, an easier way to prepare for a colonoscopy“. All of the articles from the Washington Post are fact-checked and contain credible information.