COMPARISON OF 3 FECAL OCCULT BLOOD-TESTS IN THE DETECTION OF COLORECTAL NEOPLASIA

Methods and Aims-For the detection of colorectal neoplasia, 192 consec utive patients had colonoscopy to evaluate the sensitivity and specifi city of three faecal occult blood tests (FOBT). Of 160 evaluable patie nts (96 female, mean age 51 . 9), 21 patients (13 . 1%) had adenomas a nd three patients (1 . 9%) had colorectal carcinoma. Results-When comp aring all three faecal occult blood tests for the detection of colorec tal neoplasia, the sensitivity of Monohaem (43 . 8%) was superior to b oth Hemoccult II (25%) and to BM-Test colon albumin (25%). The specifi city of Monohaem (94 . 6%) was greater than both Hemoccult II (88%) an d BM-Test colon albumin (89%). Using McNemar's test, Monohaem was a mo re accurate FOBT than Hemoccult II and BM-Test albumin (p<0 . 05). In the 21 patients with adenomatous polyps, FOBT sensitivity seemed to be dependent on polyp size, but not polyp site. Conclusion-Monohaem, a f eacal occult blood test that uses a monoclonal antibody that is specif ic for human haemoglobin, is a more accurate test in the detection of colorectal neoplasia and should possibly be used in colorectal cancer screening programmes.