A new breakthrough: ESD using a newly developed grasping type scissor forceps for early gastrointestinal tract neoplasms.

Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) has allowed the achievement of histologically curative en bloc resection of gastrointestinal neoplasms regardless of size, permitting the resection of previously non-resectable tumors. The ESD technique for treatment of early gastric cancer has spread rapidly in Japan and a few other Asian countries due to its excellent eradication rate compared to endoscopic mucosal resection. Although numerous electrosurgical knives have been developed for ESD, technical difficulties and high complication rates (bleeding and perforation) have limited their use worldwide. We developed the grasping type scissor forceps (GSF) to resolve such ESD-related problems. Our animal and preliminary clinical studies showed that ESD using GSF is a safe (no intraoperative complication) and technically efficient (curative en bloc resection rate 92%) method for dissection of early gastrointestinal tumors. The use of GSF is a promising option for performing ESD on early stage GI tract tumors both safely and effectively.