An endoscope is a thin, flexible tube with a tiny camera and light at one end that doctors use to see inside a person's body without surgery. The camera sends images to a screen, letting doctors examine organs like the stomach, intestines, or lungs by carefully inserting the tube through natural openings or small incisions.

Before endoscopes, doctors often had to perform major surgery just to see what was happening inside someone's body. Now they can inspect, diagnose problems, and sometimes even treat them using this remarkable tool. For example, if someone swallows a small object like a coin, doctors might use an endoscope to retrieve it without cutting the patient open.

Different types of endoscopes have specific names: a colonoscope examines the colon, while a bronchoscope looks into the airways of the lungs.

Modern endoscopes are so sophisticated they can take tissue samples, remove polyps, or stop internal bleeding. The invention of endoscopy transformed medicine by making diagnosis safer, faster, and far less invasive for patients.