title: Sentinel lymph node mapping of breast cancer: a case-control study of methylene blue tracer compared to isosulfan blue.
abstract: Isosulfan blue has been traditionally used as a tracer to map the lymphatic system during identification of the sentinel lymph node. However, allergic reactions may be life threatening. We compared the efficacy of methylene blue dye as a tracer for sentinel lymph node biopsy to isosulfan blue dye. In an analysis of 164 cases, there was no clinical or statistically significant difference in the success rate of sentinel node biopsy (P = 0.22), the number of blue sentinel nodes harvested (P = 0.46), the concordance with radioactive sentinel nodes (P = 0.92), or the incidence of metastases (P = 0.87) when methylene blue tracer was compared to isosulfan blue. No adverse reaction to either blue dye was observed. In conclusion, intraparenchymal injection of methylene blue dye is a reliable tracer for the lymphatic system and nodal identification during sentinel node mapping for breast cancer. It is safe, inexpensive, and readily available.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, California, USA.
authors.forename: Kamal
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Eldrageely
authors.forename: M Perla
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Vargas
authors.forename: Iraj
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Khalkhali
authors.forename: Rose
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Venegas
authors.forename: Melissa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Burla
authors.forename: Katherine D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Gonzalez
authors.forename: Hernan I
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Vargas
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004396:Coloring Agents; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008751:Methylene Blue; D008875:Middle Aged; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D012394:Rosaniline Dyes; D021701:Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy / Q000379:methods*; D013671:Technetium Tc 99m Sulfur Colloid; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D004396:Coloring Agents; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D012394:Rosaniline Dyes; C025484:iso-sulfan blue; D013671:Technetium Tc 99m Sulfur Colloid; D008751:Methylene Blue