New Study Concludes Sentinel Node Biopsy Is as Effective as Total Lymph Node Removal

A new study concludes that removal of the sentinel lymph node is as effective as total lymph node removal in detecting the spread of breast cancer, according to Professor Umberto Veronesi, scientific director of the European Institute of Oncology.

Veronesi reported to the ECCO 11 European Cancer Conference in Lisbon on a study of 516 women with breast cancer who following a lumpectomy, either had total lymph node removal or had only the sentinel node removed. If the sentinel node revealed cancer, the rest of the lymph nodes in the armpit were then removed.

Researchers found that the cancer had spread to the lymph nodes in 35 percent of the women who had all of their lymph nodes removed and also in 35 percent of the women who only had the sentinel node removed.

In the four-year follow up, the lymph nodes of all 167 women whose sentinel nodes were clear have remained free from cancer.

"The early results show that the sentinel mode policy is able to detect the cases of positive axillary nodes in a percentage equal to that obtained with the routine axillary dissection," reported Veronesi.

Other Sources: Federation of European Cancer Societies