A proposed staging system and stage-specific interventions for familial adenomatous polyposis

BACKGROUND: It is not possible to accurately count adenomas in many patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP). Nevertheless, polyp counts are critical in evaluating each patient's response to interventions. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration no longer recognizes the decrease in polyp burden as a sufficient chemoprevention trial treatment endpoint requiring a measure of "clinical-benefit." To develop endpoints for future industry-sponsored chemopreventive trials, the International Society for Gastrointestinal Hereditary Tumors (InSIGHT) developed an FAP staging and intervention classification scheme for lower GI tract polyposis.

METHODS: Twenty-four colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy videos were reviewed by 26 clinicians familiar with diagnosis and treatment of FAP. The reviewers independently assigned a stage to a case using the proposed system and chose a stage-specific intervention for each case. Our endpoint was degree of concordance among reviewers staging and intervention assessments.

RESULTS: The stage and intervention ratings of the 26 reviewers were highly concordant (ρ = 0.710; 95% credible interval, 0.651-0.759). Sixty-two percent of reviewers agreed on FAP stage, and 90% of scores were within ±1 stage of the mode. Sixty percent agreed on the intervention, and 86% chose an intervention within ±1 level of the mode.

CONCLUSIONS: The proposed FAP colon polyposis staging system and stage-specific intervention is based on a high degree of agreement on the part of experts in the review of individual cases of polyposis. Therefore, reliable and clinically relevant means for measuring trial outcomes can be developed. Outlier cases showing wide scatter in stage assignment call for individualized attention and may be inappropriate for enrollment in clinical trials for this reason.