What is a colonoscopy?
Colonoscopy is a way of looking at the inside of your colon (large bowel). It is carried out by someone with special training called an endoscopist. We carry out a colonoscopy in a specially designed department called the endoscopy unit.
The endoscopist uses a colonoscope, which is a long, slim, flexible instrument. It is about the thickness of an index finger, and has a bright light and small lens at its tip. The colonoscope allows the endoscopist to view the inside of your colon on a video monitor.
The endoscopist can pass a smaller instrument down the colonoscope so that he can take a small sample of your tissue (biopsy) or remove small growths (polyps) from the wall of your colon.
