• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.478-486
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• 2000

Purpose: The sentinel lymph node is defined as the first draining node from a primary tumor and reflects the histologic feature of the remainder of the lymphatic basin status. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of lymphoscintigraphy and intraoperative radioguided gamma probe for identification and removal of sentinel lymph node in breast cancer. Materials and Methods: Lymphoscintigraphy was performed preoperatively in 15 patients with biopsy proven primary breast cancer. Tc-99m antimony sulfide colloid was injected intradermally at four points around the tumor. Imaging acquisition included dynamic imaging, followed by early and late static images at 2 hours. The sentinel lymph node criteria on lymphoscintigraphy is the first node of the highest uptake in early and late static images. We tagged the node emitting the highest activity both in vivo and ex vivo. Histologic study for sentinel and axillary lymph node investigation was done by Hematoxylin-Eosin staining. Results: On lymphoscintigraphy, three of 15 patients had clear lymphatic vessels in dynamic images, and 11 of 15 patients showed sentinel lymph node in early static image and three in late static 2 hours image. Mean detection time of sentinel lymph node on lymphoscintigraphy was $33.5{\pm}48.4$ minutes. The sentinel lymph node localization and removal by lymphoscintigraphy and intraoperative gamma probe were successful in 14 of 15 patients (detection rate: 93.3%). On lymphoscintigraphy, 14 of 15 patients showed $2.47{\pm}2.00$ sentinel lymph nodes. On intraoperative gamma probe, $2.36{\pm}1.96$ sentinel lymph nodes were detected. In 7 patients with positive results of sentinel lymph node metastasis, 5 patients showed positive results of axillary lymph node (sensitivity: 72%) but two did not. In 7 patients with negative results of sentinel lymph node metastasis, all axillary nodes were free of disease (specificity: 100%). Conclusion: Sentinel lymph node biopsy with lymphoscintigraphy and intraoperative gamma probe is a reliable method to predict axillary lymph node metastasis in breast cancer, and unnecessary axillary lymph node dissection can be avoided.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.485-488
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• 2009

Purpose: Malignant melanoma of the lower extremity is well known to metastasize to the lymph nodes of the groin. However, in rare cases, the initial site of the nodal disease can be the popliteal fossa. As of yet, there has not been any report on cases with popliteal lymph node metastasis in Koreans. In the following report, authors would like to present two cases of popliteal node metastasis. Methods: A 60 - year - old male patient presented with nodular mass at his left sole. He had popliteal node metastasis detected on preoperative positron emission tomography(PET). Another 67 - year - old man presented with pigmented lesion at his right heel. He also had popliteal node metastasis detected on the MRI. They underwent wide excision of the primary lesion with popliteal node dissection. Results: In the first case, $2.5{\times}2.5cm$ sized metastatic melanoma in popliteal node was pathologically confirmed. There were no postoperative complications, and to date(18 months after the surgery), the patient is alive with no evidence of disease. In the second case, multiple(4) metastatic melanoma in popliteal nodes was confirmed. The patient is alive, but has had interferon therapy for liver metastasis. Conclusion: By increasing the use of lymphoscintigraphy or PET as a preoperative diagnostic work - up for metastasis, even popliteal node metastasis undetectable in a physical exam becomes detectable. When metastatic lymph node is found, node dissection is the standard of care. Therefore, it is essential that we know the anatomy and surgical technique for popliteal lymph node dissection.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.635-640
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• 2005

Sentinel lymphnode biopsy is widely performed in the management of malignant melanoma and breast cancer. The sentinel lymphnode is the prime site of draining from the malignant lesion and of metastasis. The aim of this study was to evaluate a usefulness of lymphoscintigraphy in conjunction with a removal of sentinel lymphnodes of skin and soft tissue malignancy. We studied 11 patients selected between January, 2003 and November, 2004. Clinically sentinel lymphnodes free of metastasis were examined with lymphoscintigraphy, gamma detection probe and vital dye staining, and we reviewed histopathologic findings and inert status of the nodes and the results fo treatment. Nine cases were malignant melanoma, one was squamous cell carcinoma on the left hand and another one leiomyosarcoma. Sentinel lymphnodes were identified in all cases. Three cases of malignant melanoma had positive sentinel lymphnodes on histological examination. All patients with positive sentinel lymphnodes were treated with therapeutic regional lymphadectomy, chemotherapy and adjuvant regimen. Four patients underwent PET scanning and followed sentinel lymphnode biopsy. Two had no metastasis signs on PET scanning. Therapeutic lymphnode dissection was carried out upon the patients whose sentinel lymphnode was positive on PET scanning. We contend that lymphoscintigraphy and sentinel lymphnode biopsy are reliable to confirm regional lymphnode metastasis of the skin and soft tissue malignancy, and blind extensive lymphnode dissection can be spared.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.241-248
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• 2013

Esophageal cancer has one of the highest malignant potentials of any type of tumor. The 3-field lymph node dissection is the standard procedure in Japan for surgically curable esophageal cancer in the middle or upper thoracic esophagus. Minimally invasive esophagectomy is being increasingly performed in many countries, and several studies report its feasibility and curability; further, the magnifying effect of the thoracoscope is another distinct advantage. However, few studies have reported that minimally invasive esophagectomy is more beneficial than open esophagectomy. A recent meta-analysis revealed that minimally invasive esophagectomy reduces blood loss, respiratory complications, the total morbidity rate, and hospitalization duration. A randomized study reported that the pulmonary infection rate, pain score, intraoperative blood loss, hospitalization duration, and postoperative 6-week quality of life were significantly better with the minimally invasive procedure than with other procedures. In the future, sentinel lymph node mapping might play a significant role by obtaining individualized information to customize the surgical procedure for individual patients' specific needs.

• Journal of Breast Cancer
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.433-4341
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• 2018

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) on recurrence and survival after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in breast cancer patients with cytology-proven axillary node metastasis. Methods: We selected patients who were diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and axillary lymph node metastasis and were treated with NAC followed by curative surgery between January 2007 and December 2014. We classified patients into three groups: group A, negative sentinel lymph node (SLN) status and no further dissection; group B, negative SLN status with backup axillary lymph node dissection (ALND); and group C, no residual axillary metastasis on pathology with standard ALND. Results: The median follow-up time was 51 months (range, 3-122 months) and the median number of retrieved SLNs was 5 (range, 2-9). The SLN identification rate was 98.3% (234/238 patients), and the false negative rate of SLNB after NAC was 7.5%. There was no significant difference in axillary recurrence-free survival (p=0.118), disease-free survival (DFS; p=0.578) or overall survival (OS; p=0.149) among groups A, B, and C. In the subgroup analysis of breast pathologic complete response (pCR) status, there was no significant difference in DFS (p=0.271, p=0.892) or OS (p=0.207, p=0.300) in the breast pCR and non-pCR patients. Conclusion: These results suggest that SLNB can be feasible and oncologically safe after NAC for cytology-determined axillary node metastasis patients and could help reduce arm morbidity and lymphedema by avoiding ALND in SLN-negative patients.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.41 no.6
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• pp.546-552
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• 2007

Purpose: In the breast cancer patient, lymphatic mapping and sentinel lymph node biopsy are the most important procedure for axillary lymph node staging. We aimed to compare the three radiocolloids [$^{99m}Tc$-antimony trisulfide colloid (ASC), $^{99m}Tc$-tin colloid (TC), and $^{99m}Tc$-human serum albumin (HSA)] for sentinel lymph node mapping. Subjects and Methods: Totally, 397 patients with clinically N0 stage were enrolled. $^{99m}Tc$-ASC was injected in 202 out of 397 patients, $^{99m}Tc$-TC was injected in 120 patients, and $^{99m}Tc$-HSA was injected in the remaining 75 patients. The sentinel lymph nodes were localized by lymphoscintigraphy and selected using intraoperative gamma probe. All sentinel lymph nodes were investigated by intraoperative pathologic consultation. The axillary lymph nodes which were harvested by the lymph node dissection were also investigated. Results: The patients of each group showed similar clinical characteristics. There were no significant differences (p>0.05) in the identification rate of sentinel lymph nodes (IR), false negative rate (FNR), and negative predictive value (NPV). The axillary lymphadenectomy revealed axillary lymph node metastases in those three groups (ASC-33.2%, TC-31.7%, HSA-22.7%). The IR, FNR, and NPV were not significantly different among those groups. Conclusion: Those three $^{99m}Tc$-labeled radiocolloids showed equivalent results in sentinel lymph node mapping of breast cancer.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.10
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• pp.5731-5734
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• 2013

Background: The object of this study was to examine whether a new protocol including step-sectioning and immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining of axillary sentinel nodes (SN) would lead to detection of more metastases in patients with breast cancer. Materials and Methods: Sixty-nine tumor free sentinel lymph nodes were examined. Step frozen sectioning was performed on formalin fixed SN and stained both by hematoxylin and eosin (H and E) and cytokeratin markers using IHC. Any tumoral cell in IHC stained slides were considered as a positive result. Metastases up to 0.2 mm were considered as isolated tumor cells and 0.2 up to 2 mm as micrometastasis. Results: Mean age of the patients was $48.7{\pm}12.2$ years. Step sectioning of the SN revealed 11 involved by metastasis which was statistically significant (p<0.001). Furthermore, 15 (21.7%) of the patients revealed positive results in IHC staining for pan-CK marker and this was also statistically significant (p=0.001). Ten patients had tumoral involvement in lymph nodes harvested from axillary dissection and 4 out of 15 lymph nodes with positive result for CK marker were isolated tumor cells. However, 4 of 10 patients with tumor positive lymph nodes in axillary dissection were negative for CK marker and in contrast 6 of the pan-CK positive SN were in patients with tumor-free axillary lymph nodes. Conclusions: Both IHC and step sectioning improve the detection rate of metastases. Considering the similar power of these two methods, we recommend using either IHC staining or step sectioning for better evaluation of harvested SNs.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.11
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• pp.5385-5389
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• 2012

Introduction: Sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) is a precise procedure for lymphatic staging in early breast cancer. In a valid SLNB procedure, axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) can be omitted in nodenegative cases without compromising patient safety. In this study, detection rate, accuracy and false negative rate of SLNB for breast cancer was evaluated in a setting with simple modified conventional pathology facilities without any serial sectioning or immunohistochemistry. Material and Medthod: Patients with confirmed breast cancer were enrolled in the study. SLNB and ALND were performed in all cases. Lymph node metastasis was evaluated in SLN and in nodes removed by ALND to determine the false negative rate. Pathologic assessment was carried out only by modified conventional technique with only 3 sections. Detection rate was determined either by lymphoscintigraphy or during surgery. Results: 78 patients with 79 breast units were evaluated. SLN was detected in 75 of 79 cases (95%) in lymphoscintigraphy and 76 of 79 cases (96%) during surgery. SLN metastases was detected in 30 of 75 (40%) cases either in SLNB and ALND groups. Accuracy of SLNB method for detecting LN metastases was 92%. False negative rate was 3 of 30 of positive cases: 10%. In 7 of 10 cases with axillary lymphadenopathy, LN metastastates was detected. Conclusion: SLNB is recommended for patients with various tumor sizes without palpable lymph nodes. In modified conventional pathologic examination of SLNs, at least macrometastases and some micrometastases could be detected similar to ALND. Consequently, ALND could be omitted in node-negative cases with removal of all palpable LNs. We conclude that SLNB, as one of the most important developments in breast cancer surgery, could be expanded even in areas without sophisticated pathology facilities.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.42-48
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• 2020

Background Methods for identifying local lymph node metastasis in malignant melanoma include sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) and lymph node dissection (LND). In particular, SLNB has been widely used in recent years. This study aimed to retrospectively confirm the adequacy of the current indication criteria for SLNB by applying those criteria to a mixed group of patients who previously received SLNB and LND. Methods This study included 77 patients with malignant melanoma of the extremities and trunk who were monitored for >24 months. The patients were classified according to whether the current indication criteria for SLNB were applicable. The sentinel lymph nodes were evaluated for each group. Patients for whom the indication criteria for SLNB and LND were applicable were analyzed according to whether SLNB or LND was performed. Finally, the outpatient records of these patients were reviewed to evaluate recurrence, metastasis, and prognosis. Results Of the 77 patients, SLNB was indicated according to the current criteria in 60 cases. Among the 60 patients for whom SLNB was indicated, 35 survived the follow-up period disease-free, 21 died during the follow-up period, and four experienced metastasis. The 17 patients for whom SLNB was not indicated had no recurrence or metastasis. Conclusions Patients for whom SLNB was not indicated had no recurrence or metastasis. In cases where SLNB is indicated, the possibility of metastasis and recurrence may be high even if SLNB is negative or LND is performed, so more aggressive treatment and careful follow-up are crucial.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.45 no.5
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• pp.267-275
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• 2019

Objectives: Metastasis in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) can occur in a variety of ways, and draining lymphatics and lymph nodes serve as a common route. Prior to metastasis, lymph nodes elicit an immune response to either wall off or create a favorable environment for homing of tumor cells. This immune response to tumor stimuli is visualized by recognizing various immunoreactive patterns exhibited by the lymph node. The present study aims to evaluate the role of immuno-morphologic patterns of the lymph node in neck dissection for cases of OSCC. Materials and Methods: Our retrospective study included 50 neck dissection cases of OSCC and a total of 1,078 lymph nodes. The grades of primary tumors with eight different immunoreactive patterns were compared. Vascularity and metastasis in lymph nodes were also evaluated. Results: The lymphocyte predominant pattern was the most common immunoreactive pattern found in 396 of 1,078 lymph nodes. Patterns of lymphocyte predominant (P=0.0005), sinus histiocytosis (P=0.0500), paracortical hyperplasia (P=0.0001), cortical hyperplasia (P=0.0001), and increased vascularity (P=0.0190) were significantly associated with tumor grade. Conclusion: The present study adds to the understanding of lymph node immunoreactivity patterns and their correlation with tumor grade. We recommend further study of lymph node patterns for all sentinel lymph node biopsies and routine neck dissections for OSCCs.