Endoscopic submucosal dissection of colorectal lesion

Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) has been developed for en-bloc resection of mucosal lesions of the gastrointestinal tract. It enables us to resect almost all mucosal and slightly submucosal invasive tumors, regardless of size and shape, even in the colon. Therefore, preoperative diagnosis, especially for the depth of invasion, is very important to determine the treatment strategy. The shape of the lesion, its pit pattern and also EUS findings are very useful in estimating the depth of invasion. We use an EndoEcho system with ultrasonic probe, which gives us both radial and linear image of the lesions. Remodeled three-dimensional (3D) images are also very useful in evaluating the size and the expansion of the lesion when it is located on a fold. Although the large intestine involves structural and technical difficulties, we conduct en-bloc resection by ESD while exercising various ingeunities in preparation, endoscopes, use of instruments and local injections. ESD is the reliable technique, which allows en-bloc resection of gastrointestinal mucosal lesions, and has a excellent chance of success in the treatment of early stage colorectal cancer.