Adenoma Detection Rate (ADR) - Why is it Important?

The adenoma detection rate or ADR is the most important measure of performance quality for colonoscopy.  The ADR simply stated is the proportion of patients presenting for screening that have at least one adenoma (a pre-cancerous polyp). The minimum standard is 25%. This means your gastroenterologist should find a pre-cancerous polyp in 25 out of every 100 patients screened.

Does it matter which doctor does your colonoscopy?  Absolutely YES!  There are poor performing colonoscopists with a low ADR which translates into a significant chance of missing a precancerous polyp or cancer and there are high performing physicians with a high ADR where the chance of a missed precancerous polyp or cancer is very low.

It is therefore very important that you have your colonoscopy performed by a colonoscopist with a high ADR.  Unfortunately, far too many colonoscopists do not meet the high ADR quality standard. Gastroenterologist Dr. Mitchell Cohen has a high ADR.  For January 2022 to December 2023, his average ADR was 44% (minimum standard 25%) which means if you have a colonoscopy performed by him, the chance of a missed precancerous or cancerous colonic lesion is very low.