Outline of the guideline for abdominal ultrasound cancer screening

Abstract

Abdominal ultrasonography as a health checkup has been considered to be useful for the early detection of cancer in abdominal organs such as the liver, pancreas, bile duct, kidneys, and so on. However, because of the lack of standardization of the procedure or assessment criteria, its effectiveness has not been evaluated objectively. In September 2011, the Guideline for Abdominal Ultrasound Cancer Screening was published by the Japanese Society of Gastroenterological Cancer Screening. This Guideline is composed of two chapters: Chapter 1, titled Standard Procedure for Abdominal Ultrasound Cancer Screening, and Chapter 2, titled Categorized Criteria for Abdominal Ultrasound Cancer Screening. With the collaboration of the Japan Society of Ningen Dock, the Japan Society of Ultrasonics in Medicine, and other related societies, the contents of the Guideline are being reviewed to make it perfect. The final goal of the Guideline is to evaluate the effectiveness of ultrasound screening in decreasing the number of cancer deaths.