Abstract
Background: Determining sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) in breast cancer staging involves subjective interpretation by the surgeon. We hypothesized patient and tumor characteristics influence number of SLNs harvested. Methods: A single-institution, prospectively collected database was queried for breast cancer patients undergoing SLN surgery (2002-2013) and mean SLN counts were compared. Results: There were 2394 SLN biopsies. Mean number of SLNs per patient for the entire cohort was 2.6. Mean number of SLNs removed was greater for patients ≤50 years (2.9 versus 2.6; p<0.0001). Fewer SLNs were removed with tumors ≤1cm (2.5 versus 2.6; p=0.002). Patients with grades 2 or 3 tumors had more SLNs removed than grade 1 (2.6 versus 2.5; p=0.03). Receipt of neoadjuvant therapy was associated with more SLNs removed (3.0 versus 2.6; p=0.005). Conclusion: Number of SLNs removed varies based on risk factors for SLN metastasis or false-negative SLN biopsy.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 790-792 |
Number of pages | 3 |
Journal | Breast |
Volume | 23 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Dec 1 2014 |
Keywords
- ALND
- Breast cancer staging
- SLN
- Sentinel lymph node biopsy
- Surgeon bias
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Surgery