The sentinel node biopsy in early gastric cancer: a preliminary study.
OBJECTIVE
Sentinel node biopsy is currently used in surgery of malignant melanoma and breast cancer. The feasibility of sentinel node mapping in gastrointestinal cancers and its diagnostic sensitivity is unclear. It could be of particular value in the management of early gastric cancer in which radical D2 lymphadenectomy may be unnecessary.


METHODS
From January 2004 to June 2005, ten patients with preoperative diagnosis of early gastric cancer and no nodal involvement (cT1N0) were submitted to sentinel node biopsy using the dual mapping procedure with endoscopic blue dye and 99mTc radio colloid injection. All the patients underwent standard radical gastrectomy and D2 lymphadenectomy. The resected nodes were evaluated by routine (hematoxylin-eosin) histopathological examination; the sentinel (blue or hot) nodes, in addition, were evaluated with immunohistochemistry for cytokeratin.


RESULTS
The detection rate of this procedure was 100%. The preliminary results and perspectives for feasibility of sentinel node biopsy and its accuracy in predicting the nodal status in early gastric cancer are discussed.
Mura
Gianni
G
Division of Surgery and Advanced Cancer Therapies, Morgagni Hospital-Forlì (Italy), Via Forlanini, 47100, Forlì, Italy. mandrei@tin.it
Vagliasindi
Alessio
A
Framarini
Massimo
M
Mazza
Paolo
P
Solfrini
Gabriele
G
Verdecchia
Giorgio M
GM
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004396:Coloring Agents; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D005743:Gastrectomy; D006801:Humans; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D021701:Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy / Q000379:methods*; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery
D004396:Coloring Agents; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals