Sentinel lymph node sampling in gynaecological cancers: Techniques and clinical applications
El-Ghobashy AE et al. - In a review to evaluate the technique and the prognostic significance of the sentinel lymph node (SLN) concept in gynaecological malignancies, the SLN procedure appears to reliably predict the metastatic status of the regional lymphatic basin in pts with vulval and cervical cancers. Methods- A computer literature search was done to identify relevant articles on SLN biopsy in women with gynaecological cancer.
- MEDLINE and EMBASE databases up to 2008 were searched for the following terms: “vulva, cervix, uterine, ovarian, neoplasm, carcinoma, lymph node metastases, sentinel node, technique, and prognosis” as medical subject headings (MeSH).
- Articles selected included reviews, clinical studies, letters, comments, conference proceedings, unpublished data, and case reports.
Results- Variation in detection methods of SLN was observed among the studied literature.
- Large trials have been concluded for both vulval and cervical cancers showing improved detection of SLNs with the added advantage of decreased morbidity.
- Detection protocol of SLN in endometrial cancer is yet to be refined.
- Less work has been observed with regards to the SLN sampling in ovarian tumours.
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