MARINA DEL REY, Calif. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- More than 110,000 people will be diagnosed with colon cancer this year, the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Traditionally, the treatment plan includes surgery, staples and a slow recovery. Now doctors are using a powerful tool that could make the healing process faster and safer.

It's stronger than steel and was once used to build Russian submarines. Now the material called nitinol is helping cancer patients fight their own battles.

"You don't want to believe it's cancer," cancer survivor Hanelore Shwartz told Ivanhoe. "It's just a bad word. It's a death sentence to me."

Shwartz's quiet life turned upside down when the doctor told her she had colon cancer.

"I was never sick a day in my life, believe it or not, and then you're being told you have cancer," she said.

Treatment typically involves stapling the colon back together after removing the tumor, but in 12 to 20 percent of lower colon operations, the sharp staples can lead to leaks, bleeding and infections.

"The staples that are used to connect the bowel, especially very low in the pelvis, sometimes can cause micro-perforations, or very small holes," Daniel Marcus, M.D., a general and laparoscopic surgeon at Marina Del Rey Hospital in Marina Del Ray, Calif., told Ivanhoe.

Dr. Marcus uses a metal ring instead of staples. Using an applicator, he positions the ring in the colon. Gradually, over the next two weeks, the nitinol springs pull the two parts together. Then the ring passes through the body.

"It's sort of like the hem of a skirt or a pair of pants," Dr. Marcus explained. "Once that cuts through and the ring passes, the only thing there is the tissue itself."

Doctors used the ring in more than 1,000 surgeries. Colon leak rates dropped below 2 percent, and compared to staples, patients get their GI function back sooner -- meaning hospital stays are cut by one to two days.

Shwartz was back to her daily walks with Max two weeks after surgery.

"I'm a survivor, you know?" Shwartz said.

She's cancer-free, and her biggest supporter is by her side celebrating every moment.

The ring can be used for other GI conditions like inflammatory bowel disease. It's being used in about 60 hospitals across the country.

More Information

Click here for additional research on Colon Surgery Without Staples

Click here for Ivanhoe's full-length interview with Dr. Marcus

If this story or any other Ivanhoe story has impacted your life or prompted you or someone you know to seek or change treatments, please let us know by contacting Melissa Medalie at mmedalie@ivanhoe.com

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Daniel Marcus, MD
(310) 305-1813

NiTi Surgical Solutions
(866) 225-3197