Do I need a colonoscopy?
 
Yes
  
No
    
 
 
  Family/personal history of colorectal cancer
 
 
  Family/personal history of colorectal polyps
 
 
  Age 50 or older without symptoms
 
 
  Rectal bleeding (bleeding is never "normal")
 
 
  Abdominal pain

Contact Us

General Information

Call us:  317.841.8090 or 800.872.5123 in Indiana

Our Hours:  Monday - Friday: 8:30am - 4:30pm

We know that with less cutting comes a higher quality of life, reduction of patient costs, and a quicker return to full activity. We wrote the book on minimally invasive colon surgical techniques and our center is Indiana's champion of laparoscopic colon cancer treatment. We offer cutting edge scarless surgeries (single incision laparoscopic surgery or SILS), and robotic surgery (Da Vinci) with the benefit of 3D imaging technologies and greater preservation of sexual function which can be damaged in conventional pelvic procedures.

We embrace new surgical techniques that are proven to result in higher quality of life and less postoperative discomfort. Some exciting up and coming techniques we offer in anorectal surgery include:

artificial sphincter implantation

  • an alternative to colostomy for some patients
  • success rate 70-85%
  • first performed in Indiana by our surgeons

procedure for prolapse and hemorrhoids (PPH)

  • less pain
  • less blood loss
  • less time loss from work

stapled transanal rectal resection (STARR)

  • relieves constipation
  • improves rectal emptying
  • satisfaction rate of 85%
  • first performed in Indiana by our surgeons

transanal endoscopic microsurgery procedure (TEM)

  • avoids need for colostomy
  • shorter recovery time
  • shorter hospitalizations

In colonoscopy, experience makes results and our center has over 50,000 complication-free colonoscopies since 1979. During video inspection of the colon our surgeons can sweep the bowel of polyps (polypectomy), spray vital dyes to reveal cancers (chromoendoscopy), bolster intestinal walls against swelling, constrictions, and blockage (stent placement), clot bleeding vessels, mark tumors for removal and remove contained cancer.

Noninvasive in-house tests and treatments often won't take longer than a lunch break. A patient with hemorrhoids and 20 minutes can shrink their hemorrhoids with the simple application of a band (band ligation) or treatment with a laser (infrared photocoagulation). A 10 minute Botox injection to relax the sphincter stimulates healing of anal fissures. And diagnostic exams can measure anal sensation and muscle pressure (manometry) and image the rectal muscles to pinpoint rectal masses or fistulas (endoanal ultrasound) within half an hour.
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People Helping People

"We believe that those individuals who seek our care should receive the most courteous, compassionate, and current care available. This care should be given with dignity and respect. All of us at Colon & Rectal Care Center seek to give the best, to be the best. One day, each of us may well be seeking care and we will expect no less."

Colon & Rectal Care Physicians

Healthy Living

A regular colonoscopy every ten years after 50 is the single proven method of cancer prevention. No supplement can verifiably prevent colon cancer, but playing the odds could preserve your life. Consider:

  • The quarter of Americans that eats the least fruits and vegetables has about double the cancer rate of the quarter that eats the most.
  • Cigarette addicts have a 30% higher risk of colon cancer than nonsmokers.
  • An active lifestyle reduces the risk of colon cancer by about 50%.

Diet

According to present knowledge the following vitamins and micronutrients may be cancer protective:

calcium

Current studies recommend calcium supplementation of 1200 g/day, about three to four cups of milk. more

folate

Find folate in leafy veggies like spinach, asparagus, turnip greens, as well as bean, beas, lentils, liver, and sunflower seens. more

selenium

Try brazil nuts, cereals, kidney, tuna, crab, or lobster for dietary selenium. The selenium content in these foods may vary, based on soil nutrients and other factors. more

Vitamin’s B12, B6, C, E

The damage to DNA by vitamin deficiencies is similar to the damage by radiation poisoning. more

pre- & probiotics

Unrefined cereals often contain prebiotics, and look for probiotics in your yoghurt. Pre- and probiotics are more effective together than alone. more

fiber

The average American adult only eats about a third of the recommended daily fiber intake.

Lifestyle

Exercise speeds up the digestion, minimizing the bowel’s exposure to toxins in our food waste. The American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons recommends exercise that last for at least 20 minutes, three or four times a week.


Smoking

Unlike heart and lung cancer, quiting cigarettes does not reverse or lower the risk of colon cancer, although the longer you smoke the greater the risk. Alcohol and tobacco used together is a particularly deadly cocktail linked to colorectal and other gastrointestinal cancers.


On Self Diagnosis

The right diagnosis can be the difference between life and death. Please do not self diagnosis or self medicate. Every year we see patients who either put off seeing a doctor or make a treatment decision based on inadequate information. Frequently and tragically this can be a fatal error. Be sure you have the unadulterated facts before deciding how to treat your ailment. (more)

United States National Library of Medicine
National Library of Medicine

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American Society of Colon & Rectal Surgeons