7/13/2010 — It is possible to use endoscopic procedures to look inside the digestive tract, in which a small camera on the end of a long, thin tube, called a scope, is inserted into the tract (at either end, depending on the exam), but the scopes can see only so far and 30 feet of fiber optics simply do not fit inside a human being. This made it very difficult for physicians to diagnose problems inside the bowel, particularly in the small intestine, where scopes simply could not reach. Full story.